Panama’s maritime authorities issued a stern warning to all Panamanian flagged vessels seen as another crackdown on common tactics used by ships trying to avoid international restrictions or hide their activities. Panama’s directive follows the United States that recently highlighted the tactics used by illegal shippers and rogue nations.

The Panama Maritime Authority warns that it will impose sanctions up to $10,000 and/or de-registration or de-flagging of the vessel from the Panama registry for any vessel that deliberately deactivates, tampers or alters the operation of Long Range Identification and Tracking System (LRIT) or the Automatic Identification System (AIS). The notice also warns ships that Panama is monitoring all ships in its registry 24 hours a day and it will immediately initiate an investigation if LRIT or the AIS is not reporting…