The West increases sanctions on Iran

The United States, Britain and Canada have announced new sanctions against Iran’s oil and banking sectors. Tehran has said the embargo is a “lose-lose game”.

The US has imposed new sanctions on Iran, focusing on its banking and oil sectors, and warned people around the world doing business with the country.

“Iran has chosen the path of self-isolation from the world,” US President Obama affirmed, recalling that in 2009, at the beginning of his term, he proposed a dialogue with this country.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announce sanctions against Iran - Photo: Reuters

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, in a press conference with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, also affirmed that Iran is a “worrying money laundering risk”, a step that would prohibit foreign banks doing business in the US from dealing with Iran. “The world’s financial institutions need to think seriously about the risks they will face when doing business with Iran,” Mr. T. Geithner emphasized. However, the US has not targeted the Central Bank of Iran.
Britain announced it was cutting off all ties between its financial institutions and Iranian banks. Canada said it had also banned all transactions with Iran.
The straw that broke the camel's back?

The New York Times reported that the European Union (EU) is likely to reach a deal to punish Iran, including freezing assets and banning travel for 190 Iranian individuals and organizations. The EU will also apply sanctions targeting Iran's maritime industry. France has called on world powers to freeze the assets of the Central Bank of Iran and stop buying Iranian crude oil to persuade Iran to abandon its military nuclear program. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton confirmed that more countries will announce new sanctions against Tehran "in the coming days".
In response, as reported by FARS News Agency, on November 22, the Iranian government condemned the new Western sanctions. “These actions are acts of aggression by the US, UK, and Canada against the Iranian people. They deserve to be condemned,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said, affirming that the new Western sanctions will not have a major impact on the Iranian economy. “It is just a form of propaganda and psychological warfare.”
Russia also criticized the new sanctions as “illegal” and “unacceptable.” RIA Novosti quoted the Russian Foreign Ministry as stressing that the sanctions would hinder efforts to bring Tehran back to the negotiating table.
Observers say the new Western sanctions will not prevent Tehran from continuing to develop its nuclear program. "Is this the straw that breaks the camel's back?" - AFP quoted expert George Perkovich, director of the nuclear policy program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (USA) - The answer is definitely not.
Lose-lose

Iran's trade minister, Mehdi Ghazanfari, admitted that the Iranian economy was struggling. The new sanctions target the petrochemical industry, Tehran's second-largest source of revenue. Crude oil is Iran's biggest source of revenue, worth up to $80 billion a year. Minister Ghazanfari warned that sanctions were a "lose-lose game." Iran produces 3.5 million barrels of oil a day. About 30% of Iran's crude oil is exported to Europe, with the rest going to China and India. Any disruption to Iran's oil supply could send oil prices soaring, severely impacting the global economy, especially when the US and Europe are struggling with recession and debt crises.

However, as Al Jazeera reported, Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qaesemi warned that Tehran was ready to “use oil as a political tool.” That means Iran is ready to stop exporting oil in retaliation against the West if it is over-extended or militarily attacked. Many financial experts predict that oil prices will immediately spike to $150 a barrel. Some economists believe that Iran’s oil could be offset by the excess production capacity of Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE and Oman. However, if attacked by Israel or the US, Iran can still strike a second blow by closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which 40% of global oil trade passes. In this case, Iran’s economy will suffer heavily due to the loss of oil and gas revenues, but the world economy will be shaken by the increase in oil prices. Iran - the West, both sides will lose!

(According to Tuoi Tre)