Cook Islands-flagged tankers scrubbed for alleged sanctions-busting

… But last year, registry officials were given satellite images of three oil tankers, flagged to the Cook Islands, by the New York-based anti-Iran lobby group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI). According to UANI, the images showed the vessels allegedly engaged in the subterfuge shipping of Iranian crude oil: a practice carried out by under-the-radar logistical networks that defy US sanctions on Tehran and attempt to evade the watchful eye of American authorities. Shipping industry news outlet Lloyd’s List has said subterfuge shipping has proliferated in recent years, as some shipowners capitalise on blackmarket demand to keep oil flowing from sanctioned nations such as Iran and Venezuela.