Turkey slams 'unilateral' U.S. sanctions on oil imports

World
Europe

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Monday criticized the U.S. decision to end sanction waivers for countries importing Iranian oil.

"The U.S. decision will not serve regional peace and stability, but will harm Iranian people," Cavusoglu warned on his Twitter.

"Turkey rejects unilateral sanctions and impositions on how to conduct relations with neighbors," he said.

Earlier in the day, the White House announced its decision not to grant exemptions for any country importing Iranian oil when the current sanctions waivers expire on May 2.

01:02

"The Trump administration and our allies are determined to sustain and expand the maximum economic pressure campaign against Iran to end the regime's destabilizing activity threatening the United States, our partners and allies and security in the Middle East," the White House announced.

Ending Iranian oil waivers is a bad strategic choice

Eight governments were initially given six-month reprieves from the unilateral sanctions on Iranian oil imposed last year by the United States.

One of the most significant buyers is India, which has warm ties with Washington but disagrees on the U.S. insistence that Iran is a threat.

India has been working with Iran on a seaport in hopes of circumventing Pakistan. New Delhi is "studying the implications of the decision," an Indian source said, declining further immediate comment.

South Korea's Foreign Ministry said in a statement it was consulting with the U.S. and would do its "utmost" ahead of next week's deadline.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks to the media at the State Department in Washington, U.S., April 19, 2019. /Reuters Photo

China said it opposes the unilateral sanctions and so-called "long-arm jurisdictions" imposed by Washington.

"Our cooperation with Iran is open, transparent, lawful and legitimate; thus it should be respected," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Monday. "Our government is committed to upholding the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies and will play a positive and constructive role in upholding the stability of the global energy market."

Iran warns of 'consequences'

Iranian Foreign Ministry on Monday warned against any "adverse consequences" of ending the U.S. sanctions waivers on oil imports from Iran.

An oil production platform in the Soroush oil fields in the Gulf, Iran. /Reuters Photo

"Given the illegal nature of the U.S. sanctions, Iran has not and will not consider any value for the waivers granted" by the U.S. to some customers of the Iranian oil, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said in a statement.

"However, in view of the negative effects in politics of these sanctions, the Iranian Foreign Ministry has been continuously in touch with relevant domestic institutions while holding comprehensive consultations with many foreign partners, including Europeans," Mousavi added.

Iran will make an appropriate decision over the U.S. new move and will make it public, he noted.

(Cover: Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (R) meets with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in Ankara, Turkey, April 17, 2019. /Reuters Photo)

Source(s): AFP ,Xinhua News Agency