Dozens of foreign tankers suspected of transporting sanctioned crude for Iran and Russia sailed under the Cook Islands flag in 2024-2025, according to an AFP analysis of US and UK sanctions data.
AFP reported that at least 34 ships linked to suspected sanctions evasion were Cook Islands–flagged over the period, including 20 cited on US sanctions lists and a further 14 on a British blacklist.
The flag is administered by Maritime Cook Islands, a private operator that runs the registry for the self-governing Pacific territory.
The analysis said shipowners could obtain Cook Islands papers without visiting the country, using a small beachside office – located next to a pizza shop – as their point of contact. The office serves as the headquarters for what AFP described as one of the world’s fastest-growing shipping registries.
New Zealand, which has a free-association relationship with the Cook Islands and retains responsibilities that include foreign affairs, said the findings show a policy divergence with the microstate and that Wellington has repeatedly raised concerns with its government.
“New Zealand continues to hold serious concerns about how the Cook Islands has been managing its shipping registry, which it has repeatedly expressed to the Cook Islands government over many years... This is a completely unacceptable and untenable foreign policy divergence,” said a spokesman for Foreign Minister Winston Peters.
Maritime Cook Islands said it does not harbor sanctioned vessels and that any ships accused of sanctions-busting are promptly deleted from the registry, adding that it conducts due diligence checks before registration.
Western sanctions aim to limit oil revenue for Tehran and Moscow.
Analysts say a “shadow fleet” uses reflagging, opaque ownership and ship-to-ship transfers to move cargoes outside mainstream maritime services – a practice that places added scrutiny on flag registries as enforcement widens to entities connected to suspect voyages.
Patients in Mashhad said rations shrank from two months to one week before stocks of the drug (mycophenolic acid 360 mg) “fell to zero,” with pharmacists advising a move to domestically made equivalents, the ILNA news agency reported.
Fatemeh Pour-Rezagholi, secretary of Iran’s Kidney Transplant Scientific Association, said originator-brand supplies have not been distributed recently, citing foreign-exchange constraints, sanctions-related frictions and customs delays.
She added that Iranian versions are available and effective for most patients, but unplanned brand changes can be stressful or risky for those early post-transplant or with prior rejection. Importers have indicated the original brand may return later in winter, according to ILNA.
Doctors and pharmacists told ILNA that 70-80% of recipients tolerate domestic formulations, but roughly 10-20% may require a specific brand or closer therapeutic-drug monitoring.
Patient groups and clinicians are urging clearer import timetables, steadier FX allocation for critical transplant drugs and contingency guidance to minimize unplanned switches.
Clinicians say the fiscal and human costs are far higher if grafts fail and patients return to dialysis, and have asked regulators to protect a baseline of imports for high-risk cases while stabilizing domestic supply for the majority.
US sanctions policy formally exempts most medicines and many medical devices, with humanitarian channels – such as Switzerland’s state-backed payment mechanism – designed to process vetted transactions.
In practice, suppliers and aid groups say persistent “over-compliance” by global banks, shippers and insurers fearful of sanctions risk, which can delay or block payments, shipments and insurance even for lawful medical goods.
Economists also point to the rial’s volatility and domestic pricing and procurement rules as recurring hurdles that raise import costs and complicate supply planning.
According to Mehr News on Monday, Iran has raised medicine prices several times in recent months under a “realistic pricing” policy meant to support the domestic pharmaceutical industry, but insurance coverage has not kept pace – leaving patients to shoulder a growing share of drug costs as reimbursements lag behind the hikes.
“The United States has turned into the biggest threat to international peace and security with the conduct it has displayed in recent years,” Foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said.
He said Washington had used coercive pressure across the Western Hemisphere – citing Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Brazil and Mexico – and called the proposed airspace closure “an unprecedented act that violates international law, especially aviation safety norms.”
Baghaei said such measures should be scrutinized by the UN Security Council as “clear violations of the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use or threat of force.”
His comments followed confirmation by Trump on Sunday that he had spoken by phone with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Washington’s confrontation with Caracas has escalated as US officials accuse figures around Maduro of involvement in narcotics trafficking through the so-called Cartel de los Soles.
The US has increased maritime and air patrols in the Caribbean and carried out interdictions of suspected smuggling vessels. Caracas has denounced the operations as unlawful aggression.
Over the weekend, Trump said Venezuela’s surrounding airspace should be considered “closed in its entirety,” a declaration that heightened uncertainty in Caracas as pressure on Maduro intensifies.
Asked whether the comment implied imminent military action, Trump said, “Don’t read anything into it.”
Saudi deputy foreign minister visits Tehran
Baghaei also addressed the visit of Saudi Arabia’s deputy foreign minister, saying the trip extended a two-year process of rebuilding bilateral relations.
He said discussions covered both Iran-Saudi ties and shared regional concerns, including the situations in Lebanon and Syria.
“This is a process both countries are determined to continue in order to strengthen trust and understanding among regional states,” Baghaei said.
Contacts with Europe
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s recent visit to France, Baghaei said, was held at the invitation of his French counterpart to discuss bilateral and international matters.
The nuclear file, he said, was among the topics raised but not the sole focus.
A separate call between Araghchi and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas had been arranged earlier, he added, though the Paris trip was also discussed during their conversation.
Iran’s nuclear case remains at an impasse as tensions persist between Iran and Western powers led by the United States over uranium enrichment and international inspections. The International Atomic Energy Agency continues to warn about reduced monitoring access.
Iran’s engagement with European officials, he said, remained “ongoing and structured,” with diplomacy aimed at clarifying positions rather than opening new channels.
