Panama will automatically deregister vessels that violate sanctions

Panama has said it will automatically cancel the registration of vessels that evade sanctions or are involved in illegal activities.

The Panamanian Maritime Administration (PMA) will strengthen control over vessels registered under the country’s flag, Maritime Executive writes.

In particular, the PMA now has the right to automatically cancel the registration of any vessel found to be involved in illegal activities. It will also strengthen enforcement to deregister vessels that change their flag to avoid sanctions.

“Among other reasons for automatic cancellation is the use of the vessel for smuggling, illegal trade, piracy or other crimes,” the maritime administration emphasized.

In particular, PMA plans to carry out an internal reorganization to strengthen its monitoring and control department. The administration has published a circular that allows proper inspection of the vessel, owner and operator.

It should be noted that this decision was influenced by sanctions from the USA, EU and Great Britain, in particular against the so-called “shadow fleet”.

Meanwhile, the non-governmental organization UANI (United Against a Nuclear Iran) said that a quarter of all vessels carrying Iranian oil were registered in Panama. Panamanian-flagged vessels were also used to export Russian oil.

It will be recalled that in the first days of 2024, a “phenomenal” increase in the number of vessels flying the Gabon flag was recorded. This happened thanks to a large-scale flag change operation carried out by the Russian shipping company “Sovkomflot”.