The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury has designated three individuals, one entity, and five vessels for having assisted, sponsored or supported OJSC Sovfracht, which was designated in September 2016 for operating in Ukraine. According to OFAC, the newly designated entity, Maritime Assistance LLC, serves as a front company allowing Sovfracht to continue to ship jet fuel to Syria; and has also materially assisted the Syrian Company for Oil Transport; it was designated pursuant to both Executive Orders 13582 and 13685. The five vessels that were added to the list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons are identified as blocked property of Transpetrochart Co. Ltd, which was designated pursuant to Executive Order 13685 in 2016 for having provided material support to Sovfracht.
The three individuals were designated pursuant to Executive Order 13685 for acting on behalf of Sovfracht. In June 2019, they were indicted by the US Department of Justice on charges of conspiracy to violate US economic sanctions.
Following these designations, all US property and interests of the designated persons are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from dealing with them.