Iran vows to ignore ‘illegal’ US sanctions

IRAN will defy US sanctions reimposed on it by Washington yesterday.

The country denounced it as an economic war in which the US attempted to curb Tehran’s missile and nuclear programmes and weaken its influence in the Middle East.

The US move restores sanctions lifted under a 2015 nuclear deal negotiated by the administration of former US president Barack Obama and five other world powers. It adds 300 new designations in Iran’s oil, shipping, insurance and banking sectors.

European powers that back the nuclear deal opposed the reimposition of sanctions. Major oil buyer China said it regretted the move.

The restoration of sanctions is part of a wider effort by US President Donald Trump to force Iran to further limit its nuclear work and to halt its missile programme as well as its support for proxy forces in Yemen, Syria, Lebanon and other parts of the Middle East.

Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman applauded the move, saying it would bring sea-change in the Middle East. “In a single move, the US is dealing a critical blow to Iran’s entrenchment in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Iraq and Yemen,” he said.

Switzerland said it was holding talks with the US and Iran about launching a humanitarian payment channel to help food and drugs keep flowing to Tehran. US sanctions permit trade in humanitarian goods such as food and pharmaceuticals, but measures imposed on banks and trade restrictions could make such items more expensive.

“We are in an economic war and with unity and joint efforts against the hostile enemy (the US), we can master this crisis as well,” President Hassan Rowhani said, adding that Iran would continue to sell oil. “We are proud to break the sanctions because these sanctions are illegal and unfair and against UN resolutions. Therefore all countries should break these sanctions,” he said.

The EU, France, Germany and Britain said they regretted the US decision and would seek to protect European companies doing legitimate business with Tehran.

China, India, South Korea, Japan and Turkey – all top importers of Iranian oil – are among eight countries expected to be given temporary exemptions from the sanctions to ensure crude oil prices are not destabilised.