The US on Monday imposed new sanctions on 30 people and ships over their alleged role in shipping Iranian oil as the Trump administration is attempting to ramp up its so-called “maximum pressure campaign” against Iran.
According to the Treasury Department, among the sanctioned are oil brokers in the UAE and Hong Kong, tanker operators and managers in India and China, the head of Iran’s National Iranian Oil Company, and the Iranian Oil Terminals Company.
“The United States will use all our available tools to target all aspects of Iran’s oil supply chain, and anyone who deals in Iranian oil exposes themselves to significant sanctions risk,” said US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The purpose of one of Trump’s orders related to Iran is to “drive Iran’s export of oil to zero.” But Iran has found oil markets in Asia in recent years that aren’t afraid of being targeted by US sanctions, and it’s unclear if the new measures will have much of an impact.
When Trump signed his maximum pressure executive order, he claimed he was “not happy” about doing so and insisted he wanted a deal with Iran over its nuclear program even though he also acknowledged Iranian leadership doesn’t want a nuclear bomb. However, the new sanctions have made diplomacy with Tehran less likely, based on public comments from Iranian officials.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who campaigned on engaging in negotiations with the West to get sanctions relief, has said the new sanctions show the US is not “sincere” about diplomacy.
After Pezeshkian was sworn in last year, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei opened the door to the possibility of talks with the US, saying there was “no harm” in engaging with the “enemy.”
But earlier this month, Khamenei said that talks with the US would not be “wise.” He cited the negotiations to reach the 2015 nuclear deal and the fact that the US under the first Trump administration tore up the deal only a few years later.
President Trump and other US officials have hinted military action is on the table if a deal is not reached with Iran, and recent reports have said Israel is looking to attack Iran in the coming months. “I would like a deal done with Iran on non-nuclear. I would prefer that to bombing the hell out of it. They don’t want to die. Nobody wants to die,” Trump said earlier this month. “If we made the deal, Israel wouldn’t bomb them.”
For every action there is a reaction…
One of the recurring themes of Trump’s national security strategy is his plan to "take the oil". Eight years ago Trump's plan was to seize Iraq's oil and from areas controlled by ISIS, because… "It's not stealing, we're reimbursing ourselves".
Trump leans in on targeting Russian oil revenue as he tries to fulfill pledge to end Ukraine war. https://apnews.com/article/trump-russia-oil-opec-ukraine-8f87a106b60f615040cea277096d330d
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a1d26a3d34213dbd5b82cecbb3ec2ad7faecb78dac18bb26389a440540438dc9.jpg
“If we made the deal, Israel wouldn’t bomb them,” said the Orange Maniac.
Yes, he's an expert at negotiating in the classic mobster tradition: "Because I'm such a nice guy, I'm going to make you an offer that you simply can't refuse."
Shit, I didn't read the comments before making mine again.
Why do I hear the music from "The Godfather" every time I hear Trump speak or read a quote from him?
Not gonna work just like the previous Trump attempt, but this time better…! Oil markets in Asia, membership in ECO, SCO and BRICS are other reasons…!
Yes, he's only accelerating the flight from the dollar; and, every day the natural paths to other currencies become smoother and wider.
If Iran chooses to make nuclear weapons trump can whine about it, but not stop them. He is incapable of getting support from what's left of US friends for a war on Iran. Combine that with the US military being led by a weekend news anchor and USA could not pull off a successful attack on Iran that would stop them from building a bomb.
So the convicted felon resorts to this action which will not have a major impact on Iran.
There was a time when I was against Iran because I believed all the Washington propaganda and outright lies against Iran and other countries. After doing some research and delving deeply into American foreign policy I came to learn that it isn't Iran, or Iraq, Libia, Syria, Russia, Ecuador, China, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, Columbia or any of the other 35 countries in the world that are at fault. It is the fault of Washington's foreign policies and their belief that they are entitled to govern the rules of trade, wealth around the world and Washington's business model of taking what Washington wants and leaving the macro economic destruction behind, in these foreign lands, with no responsibility or consequence. Along with this behavior is Washington's belief that they alone should have authority to impose financial sanctions and embargos on any country that doesn't pay homage to it. The over-reach has finally come to bite them back. Russia and China are now setting new rules of financial models, trade and sovereignty. Like it or not, Washington is no longer the big dog. Russia has taken that military position away from Washington and China has taken over the status of not only the world's largest economy but it has elevated itself to the status of perhaps the number two spot of military power leaving Washington in disbelief. Washington won't admit this drop in its status but it's too bad – so sad and everyone is ecstatically celebrating its slow but undeniable economic decline. The countries that have been suffering under Washington's overbearing thumb are abandoning their ties with Washington like rats on a sinking ship. The future is not with Washington but with BRICS, yet Washington continues to believe they can continue abusing countries like Iran who have tried to diplomatically make its way back to reasonable levels of interaction but they will not cower from the bully.
Trump – speaking like a true bully!!