ஈரானின் குரல் வளையை நெரிக்கும் EUவின் எண்ணெய் விற்பனைத் தடை.

"We will paralyze the economic activity of Iran and deprive the country of part of its resources. I know you can be skeptical about sanctions…but it avoids going to war,"

          French Minister of Foreign Affairs Alain Juppé

EAST NEWS JANUARY 23, 2012, 5:51 P.M. ET

EU Embargoes Iranian Oil

By JOHN M. BIERS , LAURENCE NORMAN and BENOIT FAUCON

BRUSSELS—European Union foreign ministers approved an embargo on oil imports from Iran, moving past an internal debate over the economic burden on some members and imposing the bloc's strongest measures yet to press the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program.

The EU also placed sanctions on Iran's central bank and petrochemical industry, according to a statement by the Council of the European Union.

"Our message is clear. We have no quarrel with the Iranian people," the leaders of France, Germany and the U.K. said in a statement. "But the Iranian leadership has failed to restore international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear program. We will not accept Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon."

Adding to efforts by the U.S. and the EU to starve Iran's government of revenue, the U.S. on Monday sanctioned Iran's third-largest bank, Bank Tejarat, closing off one of Tehran's few remaining conduits for trade with the West.


Treasury Department officials said they sanctioned the bank for its alleged role in financing Iran's nuclear program and for helping other banks and companies evade international sanctions.

The move follows President Barack Obama's move last month to ban any American dealings with Iran's central bank.

The Obama administration welcomed the EU's decision Monday in a joint statement by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The EU and U.S. each said they were continuing with a "dual track" approach in which sanctions are intended to put pressure on Iran to engage in talks with the international community on its nuclear program.

Tehran has yet to respond to an offer made in October to return to talks, the U.S. statement said.

The EU's move is already causing adjustments in the oil market. Refiners in Spain and Italy have already begun to phase out some Iranian oil purchases in anticipation of the embargo. Some European countries said they have contacted Saudi Arabia to replace the Iranian oil.
Although the embargo was largely in line with expectations, oil prices rose slightly at news the EU had agreed to the policy—and rose again as Iran reiterated a threat to retaliate by blocking the Strait of Hormuz, the vital shipping lane through which one-fifth of the world's traded oil passes. Crude for March delivery closed at $99.58 per barrel in New York trading Monday, up $1.25, or 1.27%.
The EU decision is likely to further squeeze an Iranian economy already under pressure from the effect of Western sanctions. Iran's currency, the rial, fell 10% to a record low on Monday following the EU decision, Reuters reported.
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparastdeemed the ban "unfair" and "doomed to fail."
An Iranian official acknowledged the embargo will hinder the country's largest revenue source. "It will make things tougher at this end" by restricting the choice of crude buyers, the official said.
The embargo could cost Iran $5 billion to $10 billion in oil revenue for 2012, and more in subsequent years, said Trevor Houser, a partner at New York-based economic-research firm Rhodium Group.
The sanctions put a freeze on the assets within the EU of Iran's central bank, which clears the country's oil sales. The EU also barred imports of petrochemical products, the export of equipment and technology transfer in the sector to Iran, and new investment in Iranian petrochemical companies and joint ventures.
The International Energy Agency said Monday that consumers of Iranian oil in the EU will have time to find replacement crude supplies, since the embargo wouldn't affect supplies until the middle of the year.
The EU imports about 600,000 barrels of Iranian oil daily—close to a quarter of Tehran's exports of 2.6 million barrels a day—according to the IEA. But those imports fall unevenly, with some of Europe's most-stressed economies—Greece, Italy and Spain—among the biggest customers.
Greece has been particularly critical of the embargo, arguing that a slower implementation was needed to ensure that its economy wouldn't be excessively burdened.
Under Monday's agreement, the EU said it will undertake a review of the policy's effects on member states by May 1, bowing to a condition sought by Greece. However, any move to reverse or delay the embargo would require the unanimous decision of the EU's 27 members, officials said.
Diplomats said EU foreign ministers would promise to take all necessary measures to ensure member states would continue to have access to oil supplies.
EU foreign-policy chief Catherine Ashton said the May review would ensure that the embargo won't have an "adverse" impact on the European economy.
Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi said the impact of the oil embargo on the Italian economy will "be negligible, almost zero."
Greek Foreign Minister Stavros Demas said Greece benefited from favorable financing terms in its Iran purchases, and that it will need help not only to find new suppliers but to also get the favorable financial terms they enjoyed from Iran. Greece has been buying 35% of its oil from Iran. Mr. Demas said Greece has held talks with Saudi Arabia to replace the Iranian supply.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Garcia-Margallo also said Saudi Arabia and other Gulf producers had guaranteed supply to offset Iranian oil "at the same price."
The move comes as U.S. officials also apply pressure on consumers of Iranian oil, including China, India and other Asian countries, to trim Iranian imports.
The effectiveness of an oil embargo will be limited as long as Iran is still able to sell some oil on the international market, says Joseph Nye, a Harvard University political scientist.
China has rejected calls to halt its consumption of Iranian oil. India's Oil Minister Jaipal Reddy said Monday that his country will keep buying crude oil from Iran and is trying to find a mechanism to settle payments despite new restrictions on financial transactions with Iran,
French Minister of Foreign Affairs Alain Juppé acknowledged some of the skepticism about the effectiveness of the sanctions, but said the EU package would meaningfully hit Iran. "We will paralyze the economic activity of Iran and deprive the country of part of its resources. I know you can be skeptical about sanctions…but it avoids going to war," he said.
Source: The Wall Street Journal