Iranian oil tycoon under EU sanctions for helping Russia
Photo: Depositphotos

European Union introduced restrictions against Iranian oil tycoon Hossein Shamkhani as part of the 18th sanctions package. In response to this drew attention to bloomberg.

The EU said that Hossein Shamkhani, whose father is a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is included in the sanctions list for his role in the Russian oil trade and as a "central player" in the country's so-called shadow fleet.

Also named are his Dubai-based companies Admiral Group and Milavous Group Ltd, through which Shamkhani is engaged in the transportation and sale of Russian crude oil.

"Thus, Hossein Shamkhani is employed in a sector of the economy that provides a significant source of income to the government of the Russian Federation, which is responsible for the annexation of Crimea and destabilization of the situation in Ukraine," the EU said.

Last year in August, Bloomberg wrote reported that Shamkhani Jr. has an oil empire that accounts for a significant portion of Iranian and Russian crude oil exports. According to the agency, he is affiliated with the Dubai-based Milavous Group Ltd, which operates a network of companies and has earned billions of dollars since its inception in 2022 by selling goods from Iran, Russia, and other countries.

It was noted that the companies affiliated with Milavous Group Ltd, among other things, sell oil and petrochemical products from countries that are not under Western sanctions (unlike Iran and Russia) and sometimes mix raw materials from different countries.

Milavous denied any connection with Shamkhani. He himself said that he runs a logistics business, is not involved in the oil trade, and works only in countries that are not under sanctions.

In a Bloomberg investigation last December was about Shamkhani's ties to Western financial institutions and his key role in supplying weapons across the Caspian Sea to Russia.