Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that U.S. sanctions on Iran were not legitimate, in Moscow's first official comment since Washington restored sanctions on Tehran.
Lavrov said Moscow, itself a target of separate U.S. sanctions, expected there would be ways to pursue economic cooperation with Iran despite the reimposition of sanctions on Monday on the country's oil, banking and transport sectors.
Speaking in Madrid, Lavrov said Washington had used "unacceptable methods" to pressure operators of the SWIFT global financial network into cutting off Iranian banks.
Russia and its European partners were looking for ways to maintain economic ties with Tehran, he said after meeting his Spanish counterpart Josep Borrell, but provided no details.
Tehran said on Tuesday it had so far been able to sell as much oil as it needs despite U.S. pressure, but urged European countries that oppose the sanctions to do more to shield Iran.
The U.S. re-imposition of sanctions on Iran has raised discussion of conducting trade in local currencies with Turkey.Washington announced new sanctions on Monday targeting Iran's energy and financial sectors along with its shipping industry.More than 700 individuals, entities, aircraft, and vessels were blacklisted, including 50 Iranian banks and their domestic and foreign subsidiaries.Turkey will not abide by US sanctions on Iran, Erdoğan saysThe U.S. government granted China, Greece, India, Turkey, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan a 180-day waiver for importing Iranian oil, which eased worries of supply reduction in the global markets after the sanctions went into effect.Mehmet Koc, domestic policies coordinator of the Center for Iranian Studies in Ankara, said although Turkey is not a party of the sanctions, the move may pose problems for bilateral trade ties of the two countries.Stating that oil and gas trade are conducted in dollars, Koc said Turkey will continue to import Iranian oil and gas."Turkey is among eight nations granted temporary waivers from the sanctions but at this point payment in dollars will not be possible," Koc said.Iran able to sell as much oil as it needs despite US pressure: VPHe recalled that talks regarding trade in local currencies between Turkey and Iran still continue.Speaking about sanctions on the Iranian financial sector, Koc said: "There is no solution left for Iran except trading in the Turkish lira. At least it will need to use lira while obtaining basic needs from Turkey."Head of Turkish-Iranian Industrialists and Businessmen Association (TISIAD) Perihan Fatih said the more sanctions on Iran increase the more Turkey's importance for Iran rises."Many European countries can be reluctant to trade with Iran therefore they may do that via agencies in Turkey," Fatih said.Trump wary of sanctions effect on oil pricesFatih noted that introducing regulations for trading in local currencies would be beneficial and advantageous for Turkish and Iranian business circles.In 2017, bilateral trade volume between two countries totaled at $10.7 billion, up nearly 11 percent year-on-year.In the first 9 months of this year the trade volume was at $7.5 billion.The country's main exports groups consist of gold, steel profile, automotive supply products, fibreboard, land transportation vehicles to Iran while it purchases raw petroleum materials, natural gas, plastics in primary forms, metals other than iron and organic chemicals from Iran.
Turkey, Iran may trade in local currencies: Experts
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday said U.S. sanctions on Iran were "not right".Following a parliamentary group meeting, Erdoğan told reporters: "We do not find the sanctions right. Because our opinion is that these sanctions aim at destroying the world's balance," said Erdoğan.Erdoğan stressed that the U.S. sanctions on Iran contradict with the international law and diplomacy."We don't want to live in an imperialist world," he added.Iran able to sell as much oil as it needs despite US pressure: VPWashington announced new sanctions on Monday targeting Iran's energy and financial sectors along with its shipping industry.More than 700 individuals, entities, aircraft, and vessels were blacklisted, including 50 Iranian banks and their domestic and foreign subsidiaries.The U.S. government granted China, Greece, India, Turkey, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan a 180-day waiver for importing Iranian oil, which eased worries of supply reduction in the global markets after the sanctions went into effect.Turkish FM says dangerous to isolate IranJoint U.S.-SDF patrols near Syria border unacceptableErdoğan said that joint patrols between U.S. forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) near the Turkish-Syrian border were unacceptable and he expected U.S. President Donald Trump to stop them.Erdoğan, set to meet Trump in Paris this weekend, told reporters he would discuss the patrols carried out by the United States and the SDF, which would cause "serious negative developments" along the border.The SDF is dominated by the YPG militia, which is the armed wing of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).Galeri: US patrols near Turkish border with SDF terrorists'Turkey gains historical result against terrorism'Turkey has made historic success against terror groups under our rule, Erdoğan said."Turkey has gained historic results against terror groups, gangs and drug dealers, and any other action targeting peace in our term [since 2002]," Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, in an address to his Justice and Development (AK) Party's parliamentary group.The AK Party won the November 2002 election with two-thirds of the seats in parliament. It became the first party to win an outright majority in over a decade.YPG/PKK, Daesh allegedly made deal to swap US soldiersTo date 2,000 people have been arrested, 7,000 others deported and around 70,000 people denied entry to Turkey over their links to the Daesh terror group, Erdoğan said."[They include] 761 terrorists in the country, 1,092 in northern Iraq, 3,000 in Operation Euphrates Shield, and over 4,500 in Operation Olive Branch were neutralized in the operations since July 2016," he said.Launched in 2016, Turkey’s Operation Euphrates Shield saw Turkish troops -- backed by the Free Syrian Army -- liberate large swathes of northwestern Syria from terrorist groups.US begins patrols with SDF in northeast SyriaOn Jan. 20, Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch to free northwestern Syrian city of Afrin of YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists. On March 18, Turkish troops and the Free Syrian Army liberated the Afrin city center.In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU -- has been responsible for the death of some 40,000 people, including those of women and children. The YPG is its Syrian branch.Twenty-one held over extortion for PKK in Turkish capital
Turkey will not abide by US sanctions on Iran, Erdoğan says
Iran has been able to sell as much oil as it needs despite U.S. pressure, Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri was quoted as saying on Tuesday.The United States on Monday restored sanctions targeting Iran’s oil, banking and transport sectors and threatened more action to stop what Washington called its "outlaw" policies, steps Tehran called economic warfare and vowed to defy.The measures are part of a wider effort by U.S. President Donald Trump to curb Tehran’s missile and nuclear programmes and diminish the Islamic Republic’s influence in the Middle East, notably its support for proxies in Syria, Yemen and Lebanon.Oil markets are stable: Kuwait oil ministerTrump’s moves target Iran’s main source of revenue - its oil exports - as well as its financial sector, essentially making 50 Iranian banks and their subsidiaries off limits to foreign banks on pain of losing access to the U.S. financial system."The Americans constantly said they would reduce the sale of Iran’s oil to zero but I have to say that so far, we have been able to sell our required amounts of oil," the Tasnim news agency quoted Jahangiri as saying."The Americans, with the help of propaganda, don't see the realities."Turkish FM says dangerous to isolate IranJahangiri said he had spoken to a handful of managers from companies on the U.S. sanctions list and that some had already formulated plans on how to deal with the measures.Jahangiri also said officials should be open with the Iranian public about the difficulties that may lie ahead, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA)."It is our duty to keep some of the worries to ourselves,” IRNA quoted Jahangiri as saying. "But there shouldn’t be an issue that is hidden from the people. This is the people’s right."US waiver allows China to buy 360,000 bpd of Iran oil for 180 daysTrump wary of sanctions effect on oil prices
Tehran able to sell as much oil as it needs despite US pressure: Iran's VP
Global oil markets are currently stable, Kuwait's Oil Minister Bakhit al-Rashidi said on Tuesday, adding that he expects such stability to continue until the end of the year.Rashidi told reporters in Kuwait City that the upcoming OPEC meeting next month will look at whether the oil market needs more crude and if there is a build up in inventories.OPEC and its allies are set to meet in Vienna on Dec. 6-7 to decide their oil supply policy and agree a long-term mechanism to manage the market beyond 2018. US waiver allows China to buy 360,000 bpd of Iran oil for 180 daysTrump wary of sanctions effect on oil prices
Oil markets are stable: Kuwait oil minister