The National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) has removed the US company Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry (LISCR) from the list of international sponsors of war. The company sent a letter to the NACP stating that it had fulfilled the conditions for removal from the list. In particular, LISCR reported that all ships of the Russian Sovcomflot had been removed from the Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry. From now on, Russia's ability to transport its oil has become even more limited, its isolation from the civilized world deeper, and its ability to receive petrodollars less.
Despite the fact that the sanctions were supposed to significantly reduce Russia's oil export revenues, the aggressor still found various ways to continue trade and circumvent such restrictions. Thus, in 2022, the largest shipping company of the Russian Federation, Sovcomflot, transferred the management of its almost 100 vessels to SCF Management Services Dubai LTD (United Arab Emirates). Earlier, Sovcomflot had transferred the same vessels to SCF Management Services Ltd, a company registered in St. Petersburg. Subsequently, SCF Management Services Dubai LTD changed its name to SUN SHIP MANAGEMENT. However, SCF Overseas Holding, which is affiliated with Sovcomflot, remained the founder of the company.
At the same time, 80 of Sovcomflot's nearly 100 tankers were registered under the Liberian flag. Accordingly, the Liberian International Ship and Corporate Registry registered and maintained the vessels. This allowed the vessels of the sanctioned Sovcomflot to continue transporting and trading their oil, which is critical for the Russian economy and the Kremlin's revenues.
The National Agency welcomes the decision of LISCR to cancel the registration of all vessels of SCF Management Services LTD and SUN SHIP MANAGEMENT. This deprives Russia of another strategically important loophole to circumvent sanctions. This decision demonstrates that international companies are ready to continue to unite to restore justice and strengthen democracy around the world.
The NACP is open to cooperation with international business and is ready to consult on the steps necessary to de-list each individual company.
The NACP is the body responsible for promoting the development of a compliance system in the private sector. During compliance procedures, counterparties are subject to integrity checks, including compliance with socially responsible business practices in accordance with OECD standards. The list of "International Sponsors of War" on the War and Sanctions portal is a powerful reputational tool for achieving integrity of supply chains in the international dimension, withdrawal of international business from Russia, and thus reducing the financial and technological capacity of the terrorist country to kill Ukrainians. One of the platform's "levers of pressure" is cooperation with the World-Check database, which is used by banks and insurance companies to assess risks. That is why for global companies the consequences of being on the list are worse than continuing to do business with the aggressor country.
