“The container ships Fesco Moneron and Fesco Magadan, as well as the cargo ship Sv Nikolay, have been removed from the list of the Office for the Control of Foreign Assets,” the Ukrainian website Kyiv Independent (KI) drew attention to the announcement of the US Department of Finance.
A spokesperson for the US Department of Defense responded to the inquiry that this move “does not indicate a broader change in US policy towards Russia”, adding that the list was updated after a thorough investigation. “The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to change behavior and promote accountability,” he added without elaborating.
Fesco Moneron and Fesco Magadan are associated with Fesco, a container transport operator in the Russian Far East, which is subject to sanctions by Ukraine, the EU, Britain and other countries. “The US imposed sanctions on the vessels in 2022 as part of measures against Promsvyazbank (PSB), a Russian state financial institution and the previous owner of these ships,” KI wrote.
The USA imposed sanctions on the ship Sv Nikolay in the same year as part of measures against the Russian Alfa-Bank, which, according to Kyiv, was involved in the transport of stolen grain from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories to Turkey. The lifting of sanctions allows the vessel to regain access to ports and maritime services previously restricted by US measures.
As Ukraine urges allies to strengthen sanctions against Russia to weaken its ability to wage war, Hungary recently blocked the EU’s upcoming 20th sanctions package in retaliation for the suspension of oil transit through the Druzhba pipeline.
US President Donald Trump’s administration recently eased some sanctions on Russian oil to stabilize global energy markets disrupted by the war in Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. At the end of March, a Russian oil tanker docked in Cuba after the US allowed passage despite the island’s energy blockade.
