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US Set To Impose Sanctions on China, India For Importing Iranian Oil

The US representatives stated on Thursday that Washington is ready to impose sanctions on all nations which continue to import oil from Iran. The list of penalized countries could also include China and India. The US has given a deadline of November to all nations to cease oil imports from Iran. 

The head of US State Department’s Iran Action Group, Brian Hook made the announcement on Thursday about the plans of Washington to impose sanctions on China. China and the US are already at loggerheads with each other amid a major trade spat and also the increasing tensions in the South China Sea.

Meanwhile, South Korea has urged the US to give it waivers on imports of Iranian oil. Brian Hook stated that the US will impose secondary sanctions on nations which do not comply with Washington’s directives to cease oil imports from the Islamic Republic of Iran. He further added that the US hopes that the nations will comply with the requests made by the US.

Waivers Only For Selected Nations

The US official also stated that only those nations which have made efforts to reduce their oil imports from Iran will be considered for waivers. After the US withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in May, Washington received global criticism from the international community. The US, unaffected by criticism, vowed to bring Iran’s oil exports to zero and impose fresh sanctions on Iran along with the reimposition of the old sanctions.

India Likely To Face Sanctions Too

The first round of unilateral sanctions on Iran was imposed by the US in August and since then Iran’s economy has been struggling. India and China are among the leading importers of Iranian Oil and they are not really keen to respect the US sanctions on Tehran. Not just China but even India has been in a dilemma to choose between Washington and Tehran. In the first quarter of this year, Iran was the second largest exporter of oil to India after Iraq. If India is not able to persuade Washington for a waiver, New Delhi might well be in the line of fire from the US.

More News at EurAsian Times

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