MONETABRIEF – The US State Department and Atlantic Council, a Washington based think bank focussing on global security had taught Sri Lanka authorities how to catch sanction busing shipping and barred nuclear activity.

More than 40 officials from the Sri Lanka Atomic Energy Regulatory Council, Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Coast Guard, Merchant Shipping Secretariat, Sri Lanka Ports Authority, Ministry of Defense, and Sri Lanka Navy, the US embassy in Colombo said.

Detecting Sanctions Evasion

The training aimed at strengthening Sri Lanka’s ability to detect and respond to maritime sanctions evasion that threatens U.S. security interests and legitimate global commerce, the statement said.

"Sri Lanka sits at a strategic crossroads for global commerce, bringing both tremendous opportunity and the need for vigilance, U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Eric Meyer said in the statement..

"As sanctions-evasion networks increasingly exploit commercial shipping, the United States is taking decisive action to counter these networks and sharing U.S. expertise with our Sri Lankan partners to protect legitimate trade, secure critical waters…"

Sanctions busters manipulate vessel identification and tracking information, use opaque ownership structures, ship-to-ship transfers, falsify documentation, and use deceptive practices to obscure a vessel’s identity, ownership, cargo, origin, or destination.

"Sanctions-evasion networks increasingly rely on complex international shipping and financial structures to disguise illicit activity and exploit legitimate commerce," the statement said.

"As a major Indian Ocean transshipment hub, Sri Lanka’s ability to secure its ports and waters against illicit maritime activity is critical to legitimate trade, and U.S.-Sri Lankan cooperation is helping strengthen that security across the region."

Sri Lanka officials were also briefed on risks facing shipping agents, bunkering (fuel) providers, and other service providers that knowingly or unknowingly support sanctioned vessels.

Companies that support sanctions busting vessels, including including brokers, fuel suppliers, and cargo certifiers have been designated by the US in the past.

Providing fuel, food, or provisions to a sanctioned vessel can expose companies and individuals to U.S. sanctions risk, including potential civil or criminal penalties, the statement said.

The US blockade of the Straits of Hormuz had left dozens of ships that carried Iranian oil and cargo stranded in many countries.

At least 22 Iranian vessels are off Sri Lanka's coast, sources say.

(Colombo/Sept26/2026)