US Sanctions India-Based Network Over Fraudulent Ship Registries
The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned a network it says ran fraudulent ship registries from Chandigarh, in northern India. The action targets Aryavart Ship Management Pvt Ltd and the two people the US says are behind it, as part of a wider campaign against shipping linked to Iran.
OFAC also sanctioned the so-called “Eswatini Maritime Affairs and International Ship Registry”, which it says is run from Singapore. Eswatini is a landlocked country in southern Africa, and its government has said the registry has nothing to do with it.
According to the US, the network is linked to false flags and certification bodies that claimed to represent Aruba, Guyana, Mali, Mozambique, Malawi, Sint Maarten and Timor-Leste. It is also accused of trying to impersonate Dominica’s registry since 2014. No individual ships were named in the announcement. The people and company named have not publicly responded to the allegations.
False flags let ships avoid real oversight. Vessels registered in this way often have no genuine flag state to inspect them, enforce safety rules or step in when something goes wrong. Indian seafarer unions have warned in recent months that fraudulent registries are putting Indian crews at risk, especially in the Persian Gulf.
The Seafarers should always confirm a ship’s flag and registry through official sources before signing on, and should only join ships through licensed manning agencies approved by their national maritime authority, such as RPSL agencies approved by DGMA in India.
