Luxembourg, 26/06/2012 (Agence Europe) - The oil sanctions against Iran, which were confirmed on Monday 25 June by the Foreign Affairs Council and which enter into force on 1 July, will impact negatively on the nuclear negotiations, the spokesperson for the Iranian minister for foreign affairs, Ramin Mehmanparast, said on Tuesday 26 June.
He warned: “Actions which run counter to the agreements between Iran and the 5+1 group (United Kingdom, France, United States, China, Russia and Germany) will have a negative impact on reaching a successful solution to the Iranian nuclear crisis.” The minister for foreign affairs Ali Akbar Salehi made it clear that his country “is used to sanctions and there is nothing new”. “I hope that the European Union will take this into account and will act more reasonably”, he added. (Our translation throughout.)
The European oil sanctions, in particular the embargo which will officially enter into force on 1 July, and American pressure to encourage buyers to reduce their imports from Iran, are already weighing heavily on the country. According to the International Energy Agency, Iranian oil exports have fallen by 40% over the last six months to 1.5 million barrels a day, and Iran is probably stocking up to 42 million barrels of its crude on oil tankers to avoid reducing its production.
Iran denies this information. The Iranian minister for oil, Rostam Ghassemi, said on 26 June that exports have not decreased much. His country announced an increase in production to nearly 3.8 million barrels a day and stable exports at more than 2.1 million barrels a day. (CG/transl.fl)