UK sanctions New Zealand insurance firm over Russian oil trade links
The British government has imposed sanctions on Maritime Mutual, a New Zealand-based marine insurer, following a Reuters exclusive report that facilitated tens of billions of dollars in Iranian and Russian oil trade.
Sir Keir Starmer’s government stated that Maritime Mutual “is or has been involved in obtaining a benefit from or supporting the Russian Government by conducting business in a sector of strategic importance to the Government of Russia, namely the Russian energy sector.”
An October Reuters investigation revealed that the insurer provided coverage for many ships in the “shadow fleet”.
This network consists of hundreds of oil tankers carrying sanctioned cargoes from Iran, Russia and Venezuela, often disguising the trade with fake locations, documents and names.
Reuters revealed that at one stage the company insured almost a sixth of the shadow fleet tankers approved by Western governments, including the US, EU and UK.
Sanctions targeting the Maritime Mutual Insurance Association in Auckland, New Zealand, include freezing assets and disqualifying directors. Sanctions were imposed on its Gibraltar subsidiary, Maritime Mutual Association Limited.
The UK Treasury has issued a license, due to expire on 9 April, that allows the cancellation of insurance policies written by Maritime Mutual entities and their subsidiaries before the sanctions were announced.
Emailed requests for comment to the company’s management and general investigation teams were not responded to by the time of publication. A person who answered the phone at Maritime Mutual’s Christchurch office declined to comment.
The company has previously denied engaging in conduct that violated applicable international sanctions. It told Reuters last year that it maintains a “zero tolerance policy” for sanctions breaches and operates under strict compliance standards designed to ensure full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.
The sanctions imposed on Maritime Mutual on Tuesday are part of a package of nearly 300 measures that Britain says are the largest set of penalties since the start of the war.
It was announced on the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The UK has taken decisive action today to disrupt the critical finance, military equipment and revenue streams that sustain Russia’s aggression,” Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said in a statement. he said.
