A Malaysian maritime agency accused of helping a Houthi official mask the origin of Iranian cargoes has described the allegations as baseless.
The statement to TradeWinds comes after the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added Transmarine Navigation Malaysia to its sanctions blacklist.
“We were shocked and totally surprised [when we] heard about this news,” said Transmarine’s Ed Saiful, who did not give his title at the Johor Bahru-based company.
As TradeWinds reported on Thursday, Ofac sanctioned Transmarine Navigation as part of its efforts to disrupt the network of Houthi financial official Sa’id al-Jamal.
Al-Jamal is accused of arranging shipping for and sale of Iranian oil and LPG cargoes to fund the Yemeni militant group that is waging war on shipping in the Red Sea and beyond.
The Treasury Department said Transmarine Navigation forged documents for the 160,000-dwt tanker Dawn II (built 2000), which has already been sanctioned by US authorities.
Officials said the forged documents showed the commodities on the ship were of Malaysian rather than Iranian origin.
They also said Transmarine Navigation was also involved in the transportation of Iranian commodities on the 106,000-dwt Reneez (built 2002). The ship, which shipping databases show is now named the Fausta, is also subject to sanctions.
“We believe the company’s stamp has been misused by irresponsible parties causing our company to be embroiled in related issues,” Saiful said of the allegations.
He said the company is ready to cooperate with authorities to resolve the issue.
Read more
- US sanctions VLGC quartet for aiding Hezbollah as more blacklistings target Houthi network
- Washington targets ‘illicit shipping network’ in bid to disrupt Houthi support
- CEO of sanctioned ship operator Red Box ‘quits after work visa refusal’
- Third master hit with US sanctions over ‘Houthi-linked oil shipments’
- US puts seven Russian LNG carrier newbuildings on its blacklist
