US law on Iran sanctions to hit Pak financial bodies

Washington: Pakistan’s financial bodies are set to bear the brunt of the strict US law on Iran sanctions which came into force today, as the country was not granted the necessary waiver extended so far to India and 19 others. Pakistan along with Afghanistan is not among the 20 countries which, according to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, have significantly reduced their import of oil from Iran. [caption id=“attachment_361678” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Pakistan along with Afghanistan is not among the 20 countries which have significantly reduced their import of oil from Iran.”]  [/caption] The list of the 20 countries which were given the waiver, was announced in three phases, the last two of them being China and Singapore. In addition to China and Singapore, Belgium, Britain, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, India, Malaysia, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and Turkey have been exempted so far. US officials did not provide any explanation for not giving the necessary exemption to Pakistan in this regard, in the absence of which Pakistani financial institutions would be majorly impacted by the tough American sanctions on Iran. “A total of 20 world economies have now qualified for such an exception. Their cumulative actions are a clear demonstration to Iran’s government that Iran’s continued violation of its international nuclear obligations carries an enormous economic cost,” Clinton said in a statement. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Iran’s crude oil exports in 2011 were approximately 2.5 million barrels per day, and have dropped to roughly 1.5 million barrels a day, which in real terms means almost USD 8 billion in lost revenues every quarter. When the EU oil embargo goes into effect on July 1, Iran’s leaders will understand even more fully the urgency of the choice they face and the unity of the international community, Clinton said. Later, a senior administration official said the sanctions on Iran’s central bank and oil sector are having a significant effect on the Iranian government and its economy. “Just yesterday you saw an Iranian official admit that sanctions have led, according to their own estimates, to a 20 to 30 per cent reduction in sales,” the official said. The US, the official said, would continue to implement these sanctions fully to achieve additional reductions. PTI