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Iran overtakes Russia as the top target of US sanctions

Iran overtakes Russia as the top target of US sanctions

Force in Play

New designations flipped from Russia to Iran in 2025, but a naval blockade, not the list, is what cut Iran's oil exports

Yesterday: Tracker shows Iran overtaking Russia in new designations

Overview

Updated Yesterday

For three years, the US Treasury's sanctions list grew mainly in one direction: Russia. Since April 2025 that has flipped. Treasury has added 1,574 names under Iran programmes and 51 under Russia programmes, according to a compilation of every OFAC list-change file published through November 6, 2026.

Russia still holds more names overall, 6,809 to Iran's 4,114. What changed is the flow. The Iran campaign is a steady drip of tankers, traders and shell companies. The Russia campaign has largely stopped, and the one measure that actually cut Iran's oil exports was a naval blockade, not the list.

Why it matters

Every new name adds screening work and cost for banks, insurers and shippers touching Iranian oil, even indirectly.

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Key Indicators

1,574
Iran-programme names added since April 2025
Names added to the SDN list under Iran programmes through November 6, 2026.
51
Russia-programme names added in the same period
Down from 4,706 names added between late 2022 and early 2025.
6,809
Russia-programme names on the list now
Russia still holds the larger stock of designations.
4,114
Iran-programme names on the list now
Net gain of 1,520 names since April 2025.
209,000 b/d
Iranian oil loadings in May 2026
Down from about 1.9 million barrels a day in March, per Vortexa, after the naval blockade began.

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People Involved

Scott Bessent
Scott Bessent
US Treasury Secretary
Overseeing the Iran designations campaign
 Donald Trump
Donald Trump
US President
In office; author of the maximum pressure memorandum
MS
Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani
Iranian shipping and trading network operator
Network designated by Treasury in July 2025

Organizations Involved

U.S. Treasury — Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)
U.S. Treasury — Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)
US Treasury sanctions office
Publishing the designations at the centre of the story

The Treasury office that writes and maintains the Specially Designated Nationals list.
U.S. Department of the Treasury
U.S. Department of the Treasury
Federal agency
Runs the Iran and Russia sanctions programmes

The department that sets and enforces US financial sanctions.
Center for a New American Security
Center for a New American Security
Policy research organization
Published an independent count of 2025 Russia designations

Washington think tank whose 2025 review counted Russia designations independently.

Timeline

February 2024 November 2026

16 events Latest: Yesterday Showing 8 of 16
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Tracker shows Iran overtaking Russia in new designations

    Latest Data

    A compilation of OFAC change files finds 1,574 Iran-programme names added since April 2025, against 51 for Russia.

  2. SDN list version 13 adds no new names

    Sanctions

    The update amends one entry, adding an alias for Dubai-based Volta Shipping Services.

  3. India-based Iran network sanctioned

    Sanctions

    OFAC designates four individuals and nine entities tied to an India-based network supporting Iran.

  4. Karnakis shipping network designated

    Sanctions

    OFAC issues wind-down general licences GG and HH for the blocked persons and vessels.

  5. Trump waives most Russia provisions of the Graham Act

    Policy

    An executive order suspends the Russia measures; OFAC issues General License 135 for Russian diesel.

  6. Graham Act signed into law

    Legislation

    The law directs new sanctions and tariffs on Russia and extends the Iran Sanctions Act.

  7. Operation Economic Outcast launched

    Sanctions

    Treasury targets Iran's digital assets, technology, gold, aviation and shipping sectors; 71 names added.

  8. Blockade reinstated after June pause

    Military

    August loadings settle near 250,000 barrels a day, according to Kpler.

  9. US naval blockade of Iranian ports begins

    Military

    Loadings fall from about 1.9 million barrels a day in March to about 209,000 in May.

  10. Rosneft and Lukoil blocked

    Sanctions

    Treasury sanctions Russia's two largest oil companies and dozens of subsidiaries.

  11. 147 names added around Shamkhani network

    Sanctions

    The largest Iran action since 2018 targets a shipping and trading network.

  12. Trump pauses Russia sanctions for a deal

    Statement

    He says he does not want to jeopardise negotiations with new designations.

  13. First Chinese teapot refinery sanctioned

    Sanctions

    Treasury targets a small independent Chinese plant that buys Iranian crude.

  14. Trump restores maximum pressure on Iran

    Policy

    A national security memorandum sets a goal of driving Iran's oil exports to zero.

  15. Last big Russia package hits oil majors

    Sanctions

    406 names, including Gazprom Neft, Surgutneftegas and 183 vessels.

  16. Treasury releases its largest Russia package

    Sanctions

    551 names are added on the second anniversary of the invasion and Alexei Navalny's death.

Scenarios

1

Iran designations keep coming at the current pace through mid-2027

Likely Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: WarBrief's sanctions tracker, which counts every OFAC change file

Treasury has added Iran-programme names in almost every quarter since April 2025, mostly ships, traders and shell companies. If the campaign continues, the Iran stock on the SDN list keeps climbing toward Russia's total while the screening burden for banks and shippers grows.

2

Russia designations resume as the Graham Act is reactivated

Possible Resolves by Apr 30, 2027

Discussed by: Cleary Gottlieb, which notes the waiver can be reversed at any time

The October 2026 executive order suspends the Russia provisions of the Graham Act but preserves existing designations. The president or secretary of state can determine that further action is appropriate, which would bring the law's measures back into force and restart large Russia packages.

3

Blockade lifts and Iranian exports recover without the list changing

Uncertain Resolves by Q1 2027

Discussed by: Vortexa and Kpler tanker-tracking data cited by WarBrief

Iran's exports fell only after the naval blockade began in April 2026, and they stayed low while it was enforced. If the blockade ends or is paused for good, loadings could climb back toward pre-blockade levels even with the designations still in place, repeating the 2025 pattern when exports hit a yearly high despite record designations.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

May 2018 – January 2021

Iran maximum pressure, first term (2018–2020)

The US withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Iran's oil and banking sectors, with a stated goal of zero exports. Treasury built the campaign around shipping networks, traders and front companies, the same playbook now in use.

Then

Iran's oil exports fell sharply and its currency weakened, but the government stayed in power and kept selling crude through informal channels.

Now

The campaign ended without a follow-on agreement, and Iran expanded its nuclear programme. The designations raised the cost of trade but did not stop it.

Why this matters now

The current campaign repeats the first-term approach, with one addition: a naval blockade that did what the list alone had not.

February 2022 – January 2025

The Russia sanctions surge (2022–2025)

After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Treasury and the State Department released large Russia packages tied to symbolic dates, including 551 names in February 2024 and 406 in January 2025 covering Gazprom Neft, Surgutneftegas and 183 vessels.

Then

Russia became the largest single programme on the SDN list, with 4,706 names added between late 2022 and early 2025.

Now

The flow stopped almost entirely in 2025 as the administration pursued a deal. An independent count found 74 Russian persons added that year, against roughly 1,500 a year previously.

Why this matters now

It shows how fast a sanctions programme can reverse direction, and why the stock of names and the flow of new ones tell different stories.

Sources

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WarBrief Steptoe Cleary Gottlieb Squire Patton Boggs Institute for Financial Integrity Maritime Watch Asymmetric Analytics VOA Editorials Critical Threats