Crimea has offered Iran the use of its ports to avoid U.S. sanctions, according to a senior Crimean official. Crimean Deputy Prime Minister Georgy Muradov affirmed that Crimea is "sending signals" of cooperation to Tehran and suggested that Iran could use Crimean ports as well as the Volga-Don Canal, which runs to the Black Sea. Crimea reportedly first offered cooperation with Iran in April. While some Iranian businessmen expressed interest, Iran has yet to take steps in response to the offer.