From the NYT via Hellenic Shipping News:
A week ago, a small tanker ship approached the Persian Gulf after a
19-day voyage from China. The captain, as required by international
rules, reported the ship’s position, course, speed and another key
detail: It was riding high in the water, meaning it was probably empty.
Then the Chinese-owned ship, the Sino Energy 1, went silent and essentially vanished from the grid.
It reported in again on Sunday, near the spot where it had vanished
six days earlier, only now it was heading east, away from the Strait of
Hormuz near Iran. If past patterns hold, the captain will soon report
that it is riding low in the water, meaning its tanks are likely full.
As the Trump administration’s sanctions on Iranian oil and
petrochemical products have taken hold, some of the world’s shipping
fleets have defied the restrictions by “going dark” when they pick up
cargo in Iranian ports, according to commercial analysts who track
shipping data and intelligence from authorities in Israel, a country
that backs the Trump crackdown.
“They are hiding their activity,” said Samir Madani, co-founder of
TankerTrackers.com, a company that uses satellite imagery to identify
tankers calling on Iranian ports. “They don’t want to broadcast the fact
that they have been in Iran, evading sanctions. It’s that simple.”
A maritime treaty overseen by a United Nations agency requires ships
of 300 tons or more that travel international routes to have an
automatic identification system. The gear helps avoid collisions and
aids in search-and-rescue operations. It also allows countries to
monitor shipping traffic.
It is not illegal under international law to buy and haul Iranian oil
or related products. The Trump administration’s sanctions, which went
into effect last November after the United States pulled out of the Iran
nuclear agreement, are unilateral.
But foreign companies doing business with American companies or banks
risk being punished by the United States. Actions can include banning
American banks from working with them, freezing assets and barring
company officials from traveling to the United States, said Richard
Nephew, a research scholar at Columbia University who oversaw Iran
policy on the National Security Council during the Obama administration.
“We have sanctioned dozens of Chinese state-owned enterprises for
nuclear, missile, arms and other forms of proliferation,” Mr. Nephew
said. “But it is not entered into lightly.”
A State Department spokeswoman said, “We do not comment on intelligence matters.”...
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