US  senators call for  probe of  Panama’s  Ghost Armada

Republican and Democratic senators from the United States wrote to the Panama Maritime Authority on January 11 to request that it investigate 189 Panama-flagged vessels – approximately 50% of a ghost fleet – dedicated to the transfer of oil from Iran, a country that has been subject to US sanctions for decades for its support of terrorist groups.

“We are concerned that the Panama Maritime Authority is not doing the necessary due diligence” for the flagging of these ships and “we are further concerned that the practices used to evade US sanctions on Iranian oil could also be used to evade US sanctions.” to Russian oil, contributing to that nation’s abhorrent atrocities in Ukraine and elsewhere,” the letter states.

The senators remind AMP that “the United States has enacted a series of sanctions against the Iranian regime in response to and condemnation of Iran’s serious human rights abuses and state sponsorship of terrorism. From supporting groups like Hezbollah and Hamas, backing the brutal Syrian regime, accelerating its nuclear, drone and ballistic missile programs, to killing hundreds and arresting thousands of its own people, in the violent suppression of internal protests. “Iran consistently works in opposition to peace, stability, democracy, and shared American values ​​and interests throughout the Middle East.”

The Senate letter explains that approximately 25% of Iran’s income is derived from oil exports and t in 2018 and 2019, the US imposed sanctions on Iranian oil, to restrict those exports.

However, “in recent years, Iran and its buyers have used a ‘ghost fleet’ of vessels that employ creative techniques to conceal the origin of Iranian oil, allowing Iran’s oil revenues to recover.

These mechanisms include transferring oil between tankers at sea, turning off GPS trackers before docking in Iran, repainting of vessels mid-voyage, ‘flag hopping’ between different national registries, and labeling oil as different types of fuel.”

GHOST FLEET
 This is where Panama comes in, with an open registry for flagging of convenience.

The AMP, shows on its website that Panama has 8,501 vessels with the Panamanian flag, which represents income for the treasury of $117.1 million. This places Panama as the world leader in flagging ships, with 16% of the world’s merchant fleet.

“Thanks to the ghost fleet – the senators point out Iran has been able to export hundreds of millions of barrels of Iranian oil in recent years, which, ultimately, finance the continuation of the regime of human rights violations, terrorist forces and the nuclear proliferation program.”

As of December 2023, the non-profit organization United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) has identified 383 vessels suspected of belonging to the ‘ghost fleet’, of which 189 (49%) have the flag of Panama.