Ghost Ships Leave Venezuela with Oil for Asia to Evade Sanctions

"The bureaucratic flexibility of the vessel registry has given the small African archipelago an unwanted reputation. Many of the cargo and oil transport vessels that carry its flag have been acquired by foreign shipping companies involved in maritime operations to circumvent sanctions," says the report by Transparencia Venezuela en el Exilio. It claims that Iran's shell navy used at least 22 tankers flagged to Comoros, as well as the Cook Islands, Palau, Gabon and Barbados in 2024, to evade sanctions, according to the NGO United Against Nuclear Iran.