US Broadens Iran Sanctions to Oil, Missile Sectors

The United States has broadened its sanctions against Iran, targeting both the country's ballistic missile program and its oil and petrochemical sectors. President Trump mandated an immediate halt to all purchases of Iranian oil and petrochemical products, threatening secondary sanctions on entities or countries, including China, that continue such trade. The U.S. Department of State sanctioned seven entities and two vessels for illicit petroleum and petrochemical transactions, while the Treasury designated six companies and six individuals from Iran and China for supplying missile propellant ingredients to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. These actions are part of the ongoing 'maximum pressure' campaign and aim to cut off funds for Iran's destabilizing activities in the Middle East. The sanctions come amid delays in US-Iran nuclear negotiations and as the US Senate debates imposing additional sanctions on Russia over Ukraine. US officials say the measures are intended to counter Iran’s nuclear ambitions, missile development, and regional threats.