Japan defies US

You know that Japan is really serious if it refuses a US demand. -- Rice Farmer

Japan refuses to stop Iranian oil imports

Japan’s foreign minister said Monday that his country would not stop imports of Iranian oil, striking a rare note of divergence with the United States during a visit to Washington.

Japan Today,

20 Cecember, 2011

After talks with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that focused mostly on North Korea, Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba highlighted Japan’s sanctions imposed on Iranian institutions due to concerns over its nuclear program.

But Gemba said: “I conveyed my view that there is a danger of causing damage to the entire global economy if the imports of Iranian crude oil stop.”

The United States and European powers have sought to step up global pressure on Iran after the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, came its closest yet to accusing Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons.

Japan has traditionally maintained cordial relations with Iran, although in recent years it has pared down its energy investments in the Islamic republic due to the concerns over its nuclear program.

But Japan, the world’s third-largest economy, is heavily dependent on foreign oil as it has virtually no fossil fuel resources on its own.