Overview
- Treasury designated Venezuela’s Empresa Aeronáutica Nacional SA (EANSA) and its chairman José Jesús Urdaneta González for acquiring, assembling and maintaining Iranian‑designed Mohajer‑series UAVs rebranded in Venezuela as ANSU models.
- OFAC also named Iran‑based actors, including Mostafa Rostami Sani and Reza Zarepour Taraghi, for sourcing chemicals such as sodium perchlorate and nitrocellulose for Parchin Chemical Industries, and targeted firms and individuals linked to Rayan Fan Group (RFKA).
- The actions were taken under Executive Orders 13382 and 13949, freezing U.S.‑linked assets and generally barring U.S. persons from transactions, with potential secondary‑sanctions exposure for foreign facilitators.
- U.S. officials said Iran’s weapons transfers to Caracas threaten U.S. interests in the Western Hemisphere and that Iran’s UAV and missile programs endanger U.S. and allied personnel in the Middle East.
- The designations build on October–November non‑proliferation measures and come as Washington intensifies pressure on Tehran and Caracas, including recent tanker seizures and a U.S.‑acknowledged land strike in Venezuela.