Who is Safe From the Ripple Effects of Iran Sanctions?

Banks of 11 countries don’t have to worry about suffering side-effects of the U.S. sanctions on Iran anymore. Japan and 10 European Union nations, including the U.K. and Germany, have managed to impress the U.S. government in their efforts to cut down on crude oil purchases from Iran and will not receive reflected financial sanctions, Reuters reported.

The other eight EU nations are Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain, according to a U.S. State Department official. The list does not include the biggest importers of Iranian oil, China and India, or South Korea and Turkey, who are also among the bigger buyers.

Japan was rewarded for having reduced imports despite being in a period of relative “hardship,” while the EU nations had decided to cease “purchase of petroleum or petroleum products from Iran,” a condition that, if not met, can be used by the U.S. to impose financial sanctions on foreign banks under the National Defense Authorization Act.

Japan, recovering from an earthquake and a nuclear disaster that followed, cut imports of Iranian oil by 15 to 22 percent in the second half of last year, the official said.

The sanctions against Iran—imposed because of the country’s continuing nuclear program—will come into effect in July.

To contact the reporter on this story: Aabha Rathee at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com