New US Sanctions

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The new US sanctions will not have a major effect on Iran’s financial and oil activity, Iranian Central Bank Governor said Friday.

“The US government has already done what it wanted. The main work related to the imposition of restrictions, what they do every day, is to hinder Iran’s financial activities and the exports of Iranian oil. In my opinion, after November 6-9, nothing special will happen,” Iranian Central Bank (CBI) Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati told Sputnik.

Hemmati also noted that Iran expected to increase the share of transactions in national currencies in trade with Russia stressing that following the meeting with Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, “a good agreement on removing the dollar and using national currencies in transactions” have been reached.

“Nearly 30 percent of transactions between Iran and Russia are made in national currencies. Hopefully [this figure] will grow every day,” the CBI governor said.

The first batch of economic restrictions, which include a ban on purchasing the US currency, trading in gold and other precious metals, buying aluminum and steel for industrial purposes, and performing activities related to Iran’s sovereign debt, took effect on August 7. The second portion, including sanctions on Iran’s energy sector and foreign transactions, will come into force in November.Earlier this year, the United States withdrew from the Iranian nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and reimposed sanctions against Tehran and any country doing business with Iranian companies.

Source: SPUTNIK

India Iran Oil

India to keep buying Iranian oil despite US sanctions

India will buy 9 million barrels of Iranian oil in November, two industry sources said, indicating the world’s third-biggest oil importer will continue purchasing crude from the Islamic Republic despite US sanctions coming into force on 4 November.

“Refiners have placed November nominations to lift 1.25 million tonnes (about 9 million barrels) of oil from Iran,” one of the sources said.

Indian Oil Corp will lift 6 million barrels of Iranian oil and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd 3 million barrels, the source told Reuters.

The United States plans to impose new sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector on 4 November to try to stop the country’s involvement in conflicts in Syria and Iraq and bring Tehran to the negotiating table over its ballistic missile programme.

The sources declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak to the media. Indian Oil and Mangalore Refinery did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“India is continuing with its relationship with both its key energy partners Iran and the US,” a second source said.

A US government official said the Trump administration is “in the midst of an internal process” of considering waivers for countries that are reducing imports of Iranian crude. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in India last month that the Trump administration would consider waivers for Iranian oil buyers such as India but they must eventually bring the imports to zero.

Indian refiners imported around 10 million barrels of Iranian oil in October, and its November shipments are expected to be lower.

In the previous round of sanctions from 2012 to 2015, India continued to buy Iranian crude although it had to cut purchases significantly to protect its wider exposure to the US financial system.

India’s foreign minister said in May it abides only by sanctions imposed by the United Nations and not those imposed by any other country.

With the European Union considering the creation of a “special purpose vehicle” before November to facilitate trade with Iran, India hopes to find a way to settle payments to Tehran.

“Previously there was no European channel,” the second source said. “This time Europe is not working with the US, so we intend to evolve a mechanism.”

India, Iran’s top client after China, has close diplomatic ties with Iran, where it is building a strategic port called Chabahar that is expected to be operational by 2019. At the same time, India is closely working with the United States to further its strategic interests.

“It is still early to say how India will settle its trade with Iran,” the first source said, adding that India could consider paying Iran for crude with the rupee currency.

Source: MEMO

Iran oil and US.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Trump administration is actively considering waivers on sanctions it will reimpose next month for countries that are reducing their imports of Iranian oil, a U.S. government official said on Friday.

The administration is “in the midst of an internal process” of considering exceptions called SRE waivers, or significant reduction exemptions, said a government official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

It was the first time a U.S. official said the administration was in the process of considering waivers. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in India last month that the administration would consider waivers and that some buyers of Iranian oil would take a “little bit of time” to unwind their trade with Iran.

White House National Security Adviser John Bolton said on Thursday that the administration’s objective was that there be no waivers and “exports of Iranian oil and gas and condensates drops to zero.” He added that the administration would not necessarily achieve that.

The administration is “prepared to work with countries that are reducing their imports on a case-by-case basis,” the official said

The comments followed news that India, Iran’s No. 2 oil customer after China, will buy 9 million barrels of Iranian oil in November. It was an indication that India will continue purchasing crude from Iran, despite the Trump administration’s push to get countries to stop their purchases.

The administration withdrew from a deal over Tehran’s nuclear program in May and is unilaterally reimposing sanctions on Iran’s crude oil consumers on Nov. 4. The sanctions aim to force Tehran to stop its involvement in conflicts in Syria and Iraq and halt its ballistic missile program. Iran says it has abided by the 2015 nuclear deal, which was struck with five other world powers, besides the United States.

International court

International Court Orders U.S. to Ease Some Iran Sanctions

PARIS — In a rebuke to the Trump administration, the International Court of Justice ordered the United States on Wednesday to ease some sanctions against Iran, including those related to the supply of humanitarian goods and the safety of civil aviation.

In response, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced in a news conference that the United States would cancel a treaty signed in 1955 by the two countries that had provided a basis for friendly diplomatic exchanges and economic relations, long before Iran’s Islamic revolution turned the two nations into enemies.

The interim ruling by the United Nations’ highest court, also known as the World Court, came in response to an urgent plea from Tehran after President Trump’s announcement in May that he would withdraw from the 2015 international accord limiting Iran’s nuclear ambitions. His decision was followed by a first round of sanctions in August, and a second round is due in November.

The court order, unanimously handed down by its 15 judges, amounts to an injunction while Iran’s July lawsuit challenging the sanctions winds its way through the court — a process that could take years.

Iran, however, took the outcome as vindication.

“The decision proved once again that the Islamic Republic is right and the U.S. sanctions against people and citizens of our country are illegal and cruel,” the Foreign Ministry in Tehran said, according to state media.

During hearings in August, Iran argued that the United States was strangling the country “through naked economic aggression” and was violating the Treaty of Amity signed by the two countries on economic relations and consular rights in 1955, long before Iran’s Islamic revolution turned the them into enemies.

Lawyers for the United States had argued that Iran was misusing the court because it had no jurisdiction in the case since the dispute involves American national security. Rulings by the court, which is based in The Hague and settles disputes between nations, are legally binding, though it has no way of enforcing them. In the past, both the United States and Iran have ignored its rulings.

Peter Hoekstra, the United States ambassador to the Netherlands, echoed the administration’s view, writing on Twitter that the ruling was “a meritless case over which the court has no jurisdiction.”

Wednesday’s decision is not expected to change Washington’s course. Mr. Trump had long scorned the 2015 accord, saying in an address in the White House: “This was a horrible one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made. It didn’t bring calm, it didn’t bring peace, and it never will.”

The United States, however, offered assurances in August that sanctions would not affect Iran’s humanitarian needs.

But the court found that such promises were “not adequate to address fully the humanitarian and safety concerns” raised by Iran.

Washington’s plans to pull out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and its announcement of new sanctions have drawn strong opposition from other countries who are party to the deal, including allies such as Britain, France and Germany, as well as Russia and China.

They have openly said that they want to uphold the nuclear deal. But despite their opposition to the sanctions, which also hurt their business deals with Iran, some Europeans have already annulled trades with Iran as they fear a punitive response from Washington.

Wednesday’s interim ruling was handed down because the judges said they recognized the urgency of Iran’s plea at this stage of the proceedings.

The summary said the sanctions must not affect exports to Iran of goods required for humanitarian needs such as medicines and medical devices, foodstuffs and agricultural commodities, as well as goods and services required for the safety of civil aviation.

In theory, the court ruled, American sanctions do not include food and medical supplies, but “it has become difficult if not impossible for Iran, Iranian nationals and companies to engage in international financial transactions” relating to such purchases.

It also urged the two parties to refrain from any action which could aggravate the dispute before the court. But hours later, Mr. Pompeo announced that the treaty would be scrapped. According to the treaty, either side seeking to end the treaty must give notice in writing, and the change would take effect in a year.

Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, praised Europe on Wednesday for taking a “big step” to maintain business ties despite the American withdrawal from the pact, which promised an easing of sanctions in return for curbs on Iran’s nuclear program.

The Tasnim news agency quoted Mr. Rouhani as saying that Mr. Trump’s increasing pressures on Tehran were intended to secure “domestic political gain.”

Tehran’s bid to get the sanctions suspended is only its latest case against the United States at the World Court. In 2016, Tehran brought a suit against the freezing of nearly $2 billion worth of Iranian assets abroad, which courts in the United States courts have said should go to American victims of terrorist attacks.

Source:THE NEW YORK TIMES

Norway Ambassador

The Norwegian Ambassador to Tehran, Lars Nordrum, says Oslo is fully committed to the JCPOA and will support promised financial mechanism by the European Union to continue trade with Iran in the face of US sanctions.

Mehr News correspondent Marjohn Sheikhi sat down for an exclusive interview with Ambassador Nordrum at Mehr News office on Sunday.

Nordrum talked about the participation of Norwegian companies in Iran’s renewable projects, oil and gas sector, as well as nuclear projects, voicing confidence that his country would be able to keep the companies in Iran in important sectors in the face of US sanctions.

Voicing regret over the US withdrawal from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, he maintained that Norway has the same policy as the EU when it comes to the JCPOA, saying that his country is working closely with Iran and the EU to help preserve the nuclear agreement.

The ambassador further stressed that despite the challenges facing trade cooperation these days, he was confident that economic relations between Tehran and Oslo would flourish in the long run.

Below is the full text of the interview:

Q: What is the standing of economic relations between Iran and Norway? And how has the impending re-imposition of US economic sanctions against Tehran changed the level of trade transactions between the two countries so far?

A: I’m very glad to say that the trade between Norway and Iran is still increasing. It is a bit early to tell what the effects of the re-imposition of US sanctions will be, as some of them have yet to take effect. It will be easier to determine the future developments of trade in the months after November 4th. But so far the trade between the two countries is on the increase.

Q: Do you think the sanctions would hit the two countries’ trade cooperation hard?

A: The effect of the end results is very hard to predict at this stage. But, we are doing everything we can and trying to come up with countermeasures, to protect our business interests. I think in Spring, after a few months after November 4th, it’ll be easier to determine the full effect.

Q: Iran has a comprehensive plan to harness renewables, and Norway seems to be very keen on aiding the country to achieve that. Norway’s Saga Energy and Scatec Solar have been in talks to build solar energy plants in Iran. Are those plans still on track? What other projects does Norway have in store for increasing Iran’s renewable energy capacity?

A:There are Norwegian companies in the field of renewable energy, be it solar or wind, that are still interested in doing business in Iran. I will not comment on any specific plans. I am confident that this will remain an important sector for Norwegian-Iranian cooperation going forward.

Q: What is Norway’s share in Iran’s oil and gas projects?

A:I am not sure what that share might be. To protect our companies, I will not go into detail of their engagement. I can, however, say that Norway and Iran have a long history of cooperation in this field, and I am hopeful that some Norwegian companies will be able to continue to work in Iran despite the difficult situation we’re about to enter into.

Q: How about the South Pars gas project, considering the fact that France’s total has withdrawn from its 50% share over US sanctions?

A:I won’t go into companies’ specifics or projects’ specifics, but we have companies in this sector active in Iran and I’m doing everything I can to help them continue their work in Iran beyond November 4th.

Q:EU has promised the establishment of a “Special Purpose Vehicle” to facilitate trade with Iran. Given that Norway is not a member of EU, would your country still support and implement this promised measure?

A:Norway is fully committed to the JCPOA and fully supports EU efforts to preserve the agreement. I would say that we have the same policy as the EU when it comes to the JCPOA. There was very promising news coming from the JCPOA meeting in New York last week and Norway is working closely with Iran and the EU to help preserve the deal.

Q:What is your opinion about the overall effectiveness of this mechanism in escaping US sanctions?

A:The details are not clear yet, and we haven’t passed the Nov. 5th, so I won’t speculate. Time will tell how effective the different measures are. But we have to make every effort to make it an effective vehicle. We are very supportive of the EU efforts to make this work.

Q:What other plans, apart from the EU collective efforts, does Norway have to maintain and develop its economic relations with Iran in the face of US sanctions?

A:As an ambassador, it is my top priority to help Norwegian businesses in Iran. Currently financial transaction is a big challenge. I hope we can overcome this. We are working closely with the EU to find solutions for our businesses.

Q: Can the two countries rely on the potential of the private sector and SMEs to make up for any limitations and deficiencies in trade ties in the face of the impending US sanctions?

A:I believe the SMEs are crucial. In Norway’s case, the vast majority of companies fall into the SME category. It is my hope that many of them can continue doing business in Iran despite US sanctions.

Q:Do these SMEs have connections with US which could still affect their business with Iran?

A:Some of them have business in the US, and some do not. I am trying to help as best as I can. But I think it’s important for my country since most of our companies are SMEs, and in this situation that might be an advantage because it might be easier for SMEs to remain in Iran than the large, multinational corporations.

Q:And how do you describe the overall attitude of Norwegian companies for continuing their business with Iran? Are they too much concerned over US sanctions or are they actually more optimistic?

A:It’s a mixed picture. I think many companies are determined to stay and make it work despite the US sanctions. Other companies have large interests in the US and are naturally very worried about the consequences for that business. So it’s a very mixed picture, but I’m confident that we will be able to keep many  Norwegian companies here in important sectors.

Q:Back in June, Iran’s nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi visited Norwegian nuclear centers and held talks with relevant authorities there. What were the achievements of that visit in regard to Iran-Norway’s nuclear cooperation?

A:Vice President Salehi had an extensive visit to Oslo in June, and I went along with him. Among many things on his agenda was possible continued cooperation in the nuclear field. Norway played an important role prior to the implementation of the JCPOA in replacing highly enriched uranium with natural uranium. The two agencies are now talking to each other about how to possibly continue and follow up this cooperation.

Q:What is Norway’s stance toward US’ unilateral measures, particularly with respect to its withdrawal from the nuclear deal and its pressure on other countries to stop doing business with Iran?

A:We regret the US decision to pull out of the JCPOA and are determined to keep our end of the deal. My Prime Minister reaffirmed this in a meeting with President Rouhani last week in New York. We are fully committed, and our end of the bargain is to try to make the business cooperation work as best as possible, and that is my number one priority as an ambassador to Iran.

Q:What is in store for the future of Iran-Norway’s economic cooperation?

A:I am optimistic when it comes to the future of our economic cooperation with Iran. I will not hide the fact that we are faced with many challenges and hurdles there days. But despite these and in the long run, I am absolutely confident that economic relations between our countries will flourish.

Source: TEHRANTIMES

Mohammad-Javad-Zarif

Iran says it is close to oil deal with Europe

IRAN’S Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Saturday that Teheran was closing in on an agreement to sell oil to European nations despite US threats of sanctions against any country that does business with Iran.

If the arrangement comes to fruition – some British and French officials say they have their doubts – it would constitute the most open break between President Donald Trump and European allies that objected vociferously to his decision to pull out of the 2015 nuclear deal.

Several of those nations openly confronted Mr Trump on Wednesday, when he led a UN Security Council meeting about weapons of mass destruction. They argued that he was throwing away the best chance the world has to keep Iran from building nuclear weapons in the coming years.In an hour-long conversation with reporters, Mr Zarif, who negotiated the nuclear accord with John Kerry, who was then the US secretary of state, sounded far more optimistic than he had in recent months that he could peel away America’s allies to break Mr Trump’s effort to cut off Iran’s revenues.

Mr Zarif is capitalising on a renewed enthusiasm among some of the allies to push back at what they term bullying by Washington to sever ties with Iran simply because Mr Trump decided to forsake the nuclear pact.

All the other signatories to the agreement – Britain, China, France, Germany, Iran and Russia – have vowed to stand by it. “No sovereign country or organisation can accept that somebody else decides with whom you are allowed to do trade,” Federica Mogherini, the European Union foreign policy chief, said this past week.

At the core of the agreement that Iran and Europe are trying to forge is a mechanism for paying for Iran’s oil in barter and local currencies, rather than in US dollars.

The idea is to route transactions around the US and prevent it from blocking financial transfers – and perhaps from identifying those involved in the transactions. Trump administration officials argue that the agreement is deeply flawed because it does not permanently ban Iran from producing nuclear fuel – it is free to do so after 2030 – and does nothing to stop Iran’s missile exports, its activity in Syria and its support of terrorist groups.

Source: THE BUSINESS TIMES

Iran and other currencies

Iran plans to use other currencies to get around US sanctions

Iran plans to get around US sanctions on its oil sales by selling its petroleum and conduct international trade in currencies other than the US dollar, the Iranian diplomat who negotiated the nuclear deal said Saturday.

“The actual mechanism would be to avoid dollars,” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told reporters at a roundtable at the Iranian mission to the United Nations in New York on Saturday evening, saying countries are starting to make agreements to use their own currencies in bilateral trade.

“You can use your own currency,” he explained. “Sell stuff in your own currency, buy stuff in the other country’s currency, and at the end of a specific period, balance it out in a non-dollar currency. It’s quite possible. And may even be profitable.”

The United States is poised to impose sanctions in early November targeting Iran’s oil sector. The sanctions were suspended under the nuclear deal the United States and five other world powers agreed to in 2015. But after President Donald Trump announced in May that he was withdrawing from the deal, US officials have been pressuring countries around the world to stop their oil sales from Iran to prevent it from its chief source of income, and threatened secondary sanctions if the sanctions are defied.

It is unclear how successful the strategy to avoid them will be. The power of US sanctions lies in the use of the US dollar in most international transactions. A foreign company that sends its proceeds from trade with Iran through an international bank would likely face sanctions because part of it would be conducted in dollars. An international company with an American employee who has something to do with a transaction, no matter how inconsequential, could also run afoul of US sanctions.

Only a handful of other countries agree with the US decision to abandon the nuclear deal. The European Union said Monday that its member countries would establish a system to allow oil companies and private businesses to keep trading with Iran. But many international corporations have already stopped doing business with Iran because so much international business is conducted at least partially in US dollars.

The attempts to evade US sanctions are rooted in the belief that the nuclear deal is working as intended, and Iran has kept all its commitments under the agreement under monitoring by the International Atomic Energy Agency. In effect, Iran and the other countries involved in the agreement are trying to keep the deal alive.

Zarif said Iran might pull out of the deal if the special mechanism being created by the Europeans doesn’t work. Asked if that would open the door to a US military attack, he said, “I think if the United States believed it could succeed in such an attack, it would have done so.”

The uncertainty over the looming US sanctions has sent oil prices to a four-year high. The sanctions against Iran, which is the third largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, become effective on Nov. 4.

The Trump administration has been on a confrontational path with Iran, which it considers the main source of instability in the region. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has stopped just short of calling for regime change, and ordered a US campaign across social media platforms and radio in support of protesters demonstrating against governmental corruption and failed economic policies.

US officials have excoriated Iran for getting involved in regional conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. But Zarif, who speaks fluent English and is the Iranian government’s premier spokesman, portrayed the United States as the aggressor in the region.

“Have you seen that map with all the US bases around us, and said, ‘Why are these Iranians putting their country in the middle of all these bases?” he said sarcastically. “We are in our region. We have not invaded any country. We have not sent troops anywhere we were not asked. We have not bombed any country. We have not taken territory from any country. We are content with our size, with our geography, with our resources. We have no eye on anybody else’s territory, resources or people.”

Both Trump and Pompeo have denounced former Secretary of State John Kerry for holding talks with Zarif. The two men formed a professional friendship during long months of negotiating the deal.

“I didn’t know that you still had witch hunts here in the US,” Zarif said when asked to characterise the conversations with Kerry.

“What he has done has been to encourage us to stay in the deal,” he added, lauding the virtues of dialogue between Americans and Iranians.

Source: nzherald.co.nz

Germany and Nuclear deal

Germany says it will stick to Iran nuclear deal; EU too looks at circumventing US-imposed sanctions

United Nations: German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has said that Berlin is committed to the Iran nuclear deal even though Washington has pulled out.

“The nuclear agreement with Iran may not be perfect. But so far, it has prevented Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and averted an escalation that, three years ago, was highly likely,” Mass told the General Assembly on Friday.

“That’s not insignificant,” he said. “We, Europeans, therefore stand together by the agreement.”

“The fact that we stand by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) does not mean that we are turning a blind eye to Iran’s destructive role in the region or to its ballistic missile program,” said the Minister, referring to the July 2015 nuclear deal drawn between Iran and the six nations — Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US.

Earlier on Monday, EU’s foreign and security policy chief Federica Mogherini said that the European Union will set up a legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Iran.

The legal entity will allow European companies to continue to trade with Iran in accordance with EU law and could be open to other partners in the world, Mogherini told reporters in New York after she chaired a meeting of the foreign ministers from Iran and the five countries that were still committed to the deal.

US President Donald Trump in May announced his decision to withdraw from the deal and renew sanctions on Iran, Xinhua news agency reported.

Maas also talked about measures to circumvent the US sanctions against Iran. “We are working on keeping economic exchange with Iran possible, and we call on Iran to continue its full commitment.”

Source: FIRSTPOST

ظریف و موگرینی

EU Blocking Statute, SPV Can Derail US Sanctions on Iran – Economist

European powers have partnered with Russia and China to create a new financial mechanism aimed at continuing trade with Iran, despite protests from the United States and its ongoing trade war with multiple world powers.

The vehicle is set to bypass American sanctions and tariffs, as well as normalize trade between the EU, Eurasia and China by abandoning trade in US dollars, potentially resetting the global economic order.

Sputnik spoke to Pye Ian, Los Angeles-based senior economics analyst, private equity executive and commentator at Newsbud.com. Ian possesses a background in precious metals commodity trading and strategic planning.

Sputnik: Is the European Union’s Blocking Statue an effective mechanism for averting financial sanctions? 

Pye Ian: On the surface, the EU’s “blocking statute” acts as a counter-measure to reimposed US sanctions on Iran. American sanctions threaten European businesses with legal actions based on noncompliance and appear to pose grave risks to EU firms seeking access to US markets and financial systems.

The EU blocking statute has drawn the ire of Washington, who sees European allies as ‘disloyal’ on its foreign policy diktat and has provoked US officials to force European firms to choose between working in Iran or the US.

Yet the deeper issue is less between betting on Iran vs. the US, but on a rising Eurasia bloc, including China, Russia, Turkey and an increasing number of their allies and partners, all whom stand with Iran and wish to preserve the three-year-old Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA), or Iran Nuclear Agreement. Iran has yet to violate the agreement and wishes to move away from Washington’s unilateral policies while embracing global multipolar priorities in trade, diplomacy and security independence.

Sputnik: What does the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) entail? How can European businesses circumvent US-imposed sanctions? 

Pye Ian: The EU’s three most important members-Germany, the United Kingdom, and France-set up the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) as a “clearing house” that will allow continued business and trade with Iran. It is one of several options that European countries are discussing with the European Commission to create independent payment channels for conducting business and trade with Iran.

The SPV ultimately represents an act of defiance by EU states against Washington’s unilateral decisions on Iran, and the EU is holding fastidiously to the JCPoA despite Washington pulling out of the deal in May this year. While Berlin, London, and Paris are driving the SPV, other EU member-states such as Italy, which is keen on participating, could join if the SPV is implemented.

The SPV represents a collaborative effort of Iran’s EU business partners to circumvent US dollar dependency, where Iran could export oil to Spanish, Greek or other EU firms to accumulate Euros which Tehran could use to pay for goods and services exported from the EU. This would not require US dollars and would meet US sanctions requirements for not doing business with Iran currency-wise while promoting crucial Iranian exports to the EU such as oil, for which there are few replacements available.

This is evident in the joint statement between China, France, Russia, Germany, France, and Britain, which “welcomed practical proposals to maintain and develop payment channels […] to facilitate payments related to Iran’s exports, including oil.” The members intend to “protect the freedom of their operators to pursue business with Iran,” which asserts Europe’s collective sovereignty and independence from Washington.

Conversely, Tehran sought the SPV to counter reimposed sanctions triggered by US president Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran Deal and sees the SPV as a means to pull its EU and Eurasian partners closer in a unique ‘blowback’ move against US economic warfare.

Sputnik: Just how difficult was it for the EU to develop the Special Purpose Vehicle? What does the SPV signal for international markets? 

Pye Ian: The EU previously struggled to devise a workable legal framework to shield its companies from US sanctions, which are set to come into effect in November, and has tried to prevent firms from pulling out of Iran. As a result, the Iranian Rial lost about two-thirds of its value this year, hitting a record low against the USD this month.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Frederica Mogherini stated that the SPV “could be open to other partners of the world”, which almost certainly includes China, Russia, Turkey, and India, whom Iran enjoys close relations and also are circumventing US sanctions in other ways. JCPoA signatures Russia and China also ultimately seek protection via the SPV.

Sputnik: What are some of the ‘unintended consequences’ of US foreign policy regarding sanctions and tariffs? How could both Washington and global powers respond? 

Pye Ian: The US nonetheless has the power to expand anti-Iranian sanctions via secondary sanctions against firms participating in the SPV scheme, but doing so could backfire as these would further alienate an already globally unpopular Trump administration, who chooses to throw trade tariffs and sanctions against multiple nations around the world, be they friend or foe.

Doing so would beg the question over viable stakes for the US and its Atlanticist partners, who price oil and currency benchmarks in US dollars to maintain dollar hegemony in order to dominate others, and conversely, for US debts and deficits to continue growing without any fiduciary checks and balances.

A key consideration on how the SPV will function and evolve involves oil and natural gas pricing and trading. Iran, Russia, China and their Eurasian and southern hemispheric partners were already reducing dollar dependence for energy benchmarks and trading. One could argue that America’s haste to use trade tariffs and sanctions against China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela and others was due to Eurasian and Latin American momentum away from the 45-year-old petrodollar mechanism for oil pricing, trading, and rent recycling.

Yet, in a rushed effort to stop this momentum, Washington could be expediting it. For example, the SPV could dovetail into supporting the petro-yuan, petro-ruble, or a gold-backed currency offerings at global prices for trading oil and gas, among others. Such development could potentially harm the seemingly perennial confidence in the already over-indebted fiat dollar.

Opposite this, the SPV’s rushed development also evidences the increasingly Eurasia-leaning priorities of an exasperated EU, which has an economy under dire strain due to systematic deflation and its ‘Club Med’ southern nations with economic difficulties due to incurable debt burdens, austerity measures, and political instabilities.

If Washington cuts off an already fairly isolated emerging economy like Iran—the world’s 6th largest oil exporter and retains the second largest reserves of natural gas—using opaque political reasoning, it doesn’t bode well for garnering cooperation with the EU while also trying to prevent a second global economic crisis due to debt levels many times that in 2006-2008.

In fact, Washington’s planned reduction of Iranian oil exports to “zero” by November 4 could veritably ‘tip things over’ for the petrodollar. Iranian oil exports cannot be extinguished with any other crude supplies, considering that the Saudis have never proven their emergency output capacity to meet over 2 million barrels per day.

The Americans also cannot make up supplies themselves, and any political ‘operation’ Atlanticists may have planned to take effect in Iran after November 4 had better happen fast and go ‘without a hitch’ in order to prevent WTI and Brent from surpassing $150 per barrel, thereby triggering aggressive recessions, popping debt bubbles, and ushering in a formal dollar crisis.

Source: Sputnik

Iraq chamber

Baghdad, Sep 28 (Prensa Latina) The head of the Trade Chambers Federation of Iraq, Jaafar Hamdani, asserted that his country will not accompany U.S. economic sanctions on Iran, say today news media in this capital.

 

Hamdani heads a delegation that began last Tuesday a visit to the neighboring country to agree on formulas to carry on the bilateral trade.

With such purpose, the official asserted that relations between Iran and Iraq keep on developing, despite the boycott decreed by the U.S. government against Tehran.

‘We are trying top facilitate exports of Iran to Iraq, for which a joint committee was created to improve the level of exchange’, he stressed.

The visitor, according to local media, said that in 2017, trade between Iran and Iraq totaled five billion 250 million dollars and in the first seven months of this year, trade increased to seven billion dollars.

That last figure, he continued, indicates the will of both parts to increase cooperation.

Hamdani advanced that the Islamic Republic of Iran can use Iraqi soil as a door out to export their products to other countries.

‘Iran and Iraq are one united nation and the aid of the Islamic Republic to face the Islamic State (terrorist organization) and expel it was very important and should thank it’, he stated.

Source: PERENSA LATINA