On Wednesday, the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on a Chinese oil refinery for buying over $1 billion worth of oil from Iran. The U.S. said the money from these sales supports Iran's government and helps fund militant groups backed by Iran.

The Trump administration said that a refinery in China's Shandong province received several shipments of crude oil from Iran worth over $1 billion. According to U.S. officials, some of this oil came from a company linked to Iran's paramilitary group, the Revolutionary Guard. They also announced that multiple companies and ships involved in these shipments have now been added to the sanctions list. These new penalties were imposed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. They are part of ongoing efforts to stop the flow of Iranian oil, which the U.S. says is being transported by what they call Iran’s “shadow fleet.” The U.S. has already punished many people and ships connected to these oil deliveries.

"Any refinery, company, or broker that chooses to purchase Iranian oil or facilitate Iran's oil trade places itself at serious risk," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a news release. "The United States is committed to disrupting all actors providing support to Iran's oil supply chain, which the regime uses to support its terrorist proxies and partners." Iran has been accused of supporting militant groups like the Houthis in Yemen, who have attacked international ships, as well as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

Earlier this year, during his confirmation hearing, Bessent criticised how the Biden administration is handling sanctions. He said the U.S. needs stronger sanctions, especially against Iran, Russia, and their oil industries. Tammy Bruce, a spokesperson for the State Department, said in a statement on Wednesday that Trump is determined to completely stop Iran's illegal oil exports, including those going to China. 

"As long as Iran attempts to generate oil revenues to fund its destabilising activities, the United States will hold both Iran and all its partners in sanctions evasion accountable," Bruce said. New sanctions were announced on the same day Iran confirmed that the next round of nuclear talks with the U.S. will take place in Rome. In response to the sanctions, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for China’s embassy in Washington, said that using sanctions harms international trade rules, disrupts normal business and trade, and violates the legal rights of Chinese companies and individuals. Meanwhile, Iran's U.N. mission has not yet responded to a request for comment as of Wednesday.