U.S. Treasury sanctions nine over Iran weapons procurement network

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U.S. sanctions Iran procurement

Highlights

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned nine individuals and entities, including China- and Hong Kong-based firms, over alleged weapons procurement for the IRGC and MODAFL.
Designations under Executive Orders 13382, 13902, and State-imposed 13949 target procurement and payment networks linked to Iran, involving millions of dollars in transactions.
U.S. persons are barred from dealing with designated actors; foreign financial institutions transacting significantly with them risk secondary sanctions and U.S. account restrictions.

Sanctions target procurement and payment channels

As reported by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Office of Foreign Assets Control is sanctioning nine individuals and entities accused of supporting weapons procurement for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, and the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, or MODAFL. Treasury says the action is part of its Economic Fury campaign and builds on May 8, 2026 designations aimed at procurement networks linked to the IRGC and Iran’s Center for Innovation and Technology Cooperation.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the department is disrupting foreign procurement networks that support the Iranian military’s efforts to acquire weapons. OFAC says the designations include China- and Hong Kong-based people and companies involved in arranging weapons purchases, as well as a Hong Kong-based firm operating in Iran’s clandestine banking network that attempted transactions tied to procurement activity.

The action is taken under Executive Order 13382, which targets weapons of mass destruction proliferators and their supporters, and Executive Order 13902, which targets people operating in Iran’s financial sector. At the same time, the U.S. Department of State is imposing sanctions on two entities and two individuals in Iran and Belarus under Executive Order 13949 in connection with Iran’s conventional arms-related activities.

China and Hong Kong links raise compliance risks

Treasury identifies Chinese national Liu Boyu, sole director and president of Hong Kong-registered Mustad Limited, as a facilitator of financial transactions tied to millions of dollars in weapons procurement for the IRGC. It also names Wang Hongyi and Xu Lichun, described as Mustad employees, and says Shanghai-based Mustad Shanghai International Trade Co Ltd is wholly owned by Mustad.

OFAC also designates Hong Kong-based Domus Trading HK Limited, saying it works within Iran’s clandestine banking network to facilitate payments for blocked Iranian persons and has attempted to process payments connected to weapons procurement. In a separate procurement track, Treasury names China-based Iranian national Manuchehr Golchin, Chinese national Meng Shaopei, Hong Kong-based Solos International Limited and Shangshun Hong Kong Ltd as part of a network that supports MODAFL defense acquisitions from China.

As a result of the sanctions, all property and interests in property of the designated persons that are in the U.S. or controlled by U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Treasury says U.S. persons are generally barred from dealing with blocked parties, while foreign financial institutions that knowingly facilitate significant transactions for sanctioned actors may face secondary sanctions and restrictions on correspondent or payable-through accounts in the U.S.

In our earlier coverage of President Donald Trump’s June 10, 2026 remarks, we noted that Washington signaled readiness to intensify strikes on Iran while simultaneously pressing Tehran to accept what Trump called a “meaningful” agreement. We also highlighted how the mix of public military threats and negotiation pressure was adding to regional risk and uncertainty over whether diplomacy would prevail or tensions would escalate further.

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