US introduces sanctions against Iran

Iran will break US sanctions: President Rouhani

Press TV,

5 November, 2018

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says Iran will break the sanctions imposed by the United States on Tehran as well as on countries that do business with it, shortly after a round of anti-Iran sanctions by America took effect.

Speaking at a meeting with the directors and deputies of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance on Monday, President Rouhani said, "We should break the sanctions very well, and we will do that."

"With the help of the people, and the unity that exists in our society, we have to make the Americans understand that they must not use the language of force, pressure, and threats to speak to the great Iranian nation. They must be punished once and for all," the Iranian president said.

The meeting and remarks came shortly after a new round of US sanctions took effect. The new bans target, among other things, Iran's oil sales and Central Bank. More Iranian individuals have also been targeted by the US Department of the Treasury.

The US measures also include so-called secondary sanctions — punitive measures against third countries doing business with Iran.

Iranians trample on huge prints of US 100-dollar banknote images during a demonstration outside the former US embassy in the capital, Tehran, on November 4, 2018, to mark the anniversary of its takeover in 1979. (Photo by AFP)

US President Donald Trump introduced a first round of "primary" and "secondary" sanctions against Iran and its trade partners in August.

In May, he unilaterally pulled the US out of a multilateral deal with Iran. Two months later, footage reportedly came out in which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed he had personally convinced Trump to withdraw from the Iran deal.

Iran struck the deal with originally six world powers and the European Union (EU) back in 2015, agreeing to curb its nuclear program in return for the lifting of restrictions mainly on its oil sales.

Despite the US withdrawal, Iran has stayed in the deal but has stressed that the other parties to the agreement have to work to offset the negative impacts of the US pullout. Europe has been taking a range of measures to meet the Iranian demand for practical guarantees.

President Rouhani said Europe, too, was angry at US policies.

"Today, what the Americans are doing is merely pressure [ordinary] people, and no one else. It's pressure [that is being put] on [the Iranian] people, other nations, other [foreign] businesses, and other governments," he said. "Today, we are not the only ones who are angry at US policies; even European businesses and governments are angered by US policies, too."

The US had since the May 8 withdrawal designated November 4 as the date when it aimed to bring Iran's oil sales down to "zero." However, three days ahead of that much-advertised deadline, the US granted waivers to eight major state buyers of Iranian crude.

President Rouhani said US officials had in fact conceded defeat.

"They (the Americans) saw that they couldn't replace [Iranian oil on the market]; and even assuming they did not concede defeat and did not grant waivers to countries, we would still be able to sell our oil [because] we have adequate capabilities to do that," the Iranian president said.

'Europeans want Trump gone'

In his Monday remarks, President Rouhani also said he believed that America had never before seen as lawless an administration as that of Trump's.

He said all US administrations had violated international law, but "these (current officials) score on top on the lawlessness rankings."

"I don't recall a group assuming power at the White House that was racist as these," the Iranian president said.

"This is not [just] us who wish for the life of this incumbent administration in the US to become shorter and shorter; their (the Americans') own European allies have told me in [private] meetings that that is one of their wishes," President Rouhani said.

'Dialog needs no intermediary, but US must honor promises'

President Rouhani said that when he was in New York for the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in September, "the leaders of four major countries" sought to broker a meeting between him and the US president. He did not name those leaders.

The Iranian chief executive said, however, that there was no need for mediation.

"Honor your obligations first! We will speak then," Rouhani said, addressing American officials. "We have no problem with talking. If our interlocutor honors its word and promises, what will be wrong with talking?"

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani meets with United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres in New York, the US, on September 26, 2018, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. (Photo by AFP)

He noted that the unilateral withdrawal from the Iran deal has isolated the US.

"Just look at how many countries support the US move and how many don't," he said. "The fact America insists on something and the entire European Union resists that same thing is nothing simple. That means victory for [our] diplomacy and foreign policy."

Earlier, President Rouhani's chief of staff announced that Trump had eight times requested a meeting with the Iranian president while he was in New York but had been rejected all eight times.

'Iran in economic war with US' & 'Iran's economic problems will end'

President Rouhani also said that the Islamic Republic was engaged in "an economic war" with the US.

"We have to stand and fight, and win," he said. "God will make us win."

The Iranian president also said the current economic problems faced by Iran will not continue.

"We will re-launch economic growth. No one should think the trend we have been seeing in the past several months will continue like that. This trend will be stopped."

Iran's national currency has lost some of its value against the US dollar over the past months. While the Iranian rial has partially rebounded, it continues to be at a low exchange rate against the US dollar.

Iran Is Preparing For A Long Siege As The Global Squeeze Begins

Zero Hedge,

5 November, 2018

Authored by Elijah Magnier, Middle East based chief international war correspondent for Al Rai Media

On Monday the harshest and highest level economic and energy sanctions that can be imposed on any country have been imposed unilaterally on Iran. The US establishment will try its best to bring the Islamic Republic to its knees and Tehran will do its best to cross the US minefield. Whatever the outcome, Iran will never submit to Washington’s twelve conditions.

Iran is not a fledgling country ready to collapse at the imposition of the first tight sanctions, nor will Iran allow its oil exports to be frozen without reacting. In fact, US and UN sanctions against Iran date to the beginning of the Islamic Revolution and the fall of the Shah in 1979.

No doubt the Iranian economy will be affected. Nevertheless, Iranian unity today has reached new heights. President Trump has managed to bring reformists and radicals together under the same umbrella!

 

Iranian General Qassem Soleimani has said to President Hassan Rouhani: “You walk and we stand ahead of you. Don’t respond to Trump’s provocations because he is insolent and not at your level. I shall face him myself”. Rouhani believes “US policy and its new conspiracy will fail”. All responsible figures in the Iranian regime are now united under the leadership of Imam Ali Khamenei against the US policy whose aim is to curb the regime.

Under the previous worldwide sanctions regime, Iran began developing missile technology and precision weapons. Iran has never yielded in support of its allies because these alliances are an integral part of its ideology.

Today, Tehran is not standing alone against the US and is waiting to see what course global sanctions will take before reacting. Officials in Tehran, convinced that Trump will win a second term, are preparing for a long siege.

Sayyed Ali Khamenei said his country will never strike any deal with the US and won’t be a party to any future agreement because the US is fundamentally untrustworthy. Iran relies on the unity of its own citizens and on the support of its partners in the Middle East, Europe (a crucial strategic ally), and Asia.

 

Europe, notably, is trying to disengage itself from the US sanctions, but so far with little success. Its leaders are begging in vain for an exemption for trade in food and medicine to reduce the population’s suffering.

Trump is determined – even if these measures are harmful to the European economy – to prevent any transactions between Iran and Europe. This is one of the main reasons why the European continent is looking at implementing a long-term strategy specifically to disengage itself from the Swift messaging service used by banks and financial institutions for all trade transactions worldwide.

 

The UK, Germany and France have stood firm against the US establishment’s decisions and sanctions for the first time since World War II. Trump shows no concern for principles, laws or international agreements (like the Nuclear Deal) and is instead engaged in a naked quest for profits. The US is trying to maintain its global hegemonic power and its long-standing efforts for world domination, at the expense of its European partners and its Middle Eastern allies who are constantly bled by the US’s extortion racket.

Several European companies have an interest in ignoring Trump’s warnings: they could decide to trade with Iran solely on the basis of local currency exchange, provided there are no US-based assets involved.

One of the main problems that remains is Iraq. The US aims to create internal struggle within Baghdad’s political circles, notably between pro-Iran and pro-USA factions. Nevertheless, Mesopotamia will never close its doors on Iran’s trade and will maintain the flow of goods between the two countries, regardless of consequences.

If Trump decides to deal more harshly with Iraq, he will push the country further into the arms of Iran. Trump has already shown signs of weakness: he granted a temporary sanctions waiver to eight countries, including Russia, China, Turkey, Japan, India and South Korea.

And Russia, China and Turkey have announced that they will not abide by any sanctions, with or without US blessing. This means that Iran will not be completely surrounded; these countries will trade extensively with the Islamic Republic. Iranian exports of 2.5 million barrels per day will be reduced but will never be shut down completely. Thus US plans–to hit Iran’s economy, change the regime, stop innovative military production and curtail Iranian support to its allies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Afghanistan—are not feasible.

For a case in point: the “Islamic State” (ISIS) terrorist group managed to sell its oil for several years. Stolen oil from Iraq and Syria reached the Mediterranean and was even exported outside the Middle East. By the same token, a long-established country like Iran will not find it very difficult to export its oil.

 

Trump’s sanctions have terrorized his allies more than his enemies. These allies are seriously looking today for other alternatives. What was inconceivable has become a reality; US actions respect no limits or boundaries. The new sanctions will help Iran to become even more independent and self-sufficient in many fields.

Furthermore, the number of countries concerned by and determined to escape US hegemony is increasing. The US is showing a few diplomatic skills: in reality, it has become a giant, indeed, very strong, entity with a lot of muscle but few brains.

At the same time, there are strong indications that the US is extremely concerned about its worldwide position. Europe is not hiding signs of rebellion against the US; China and Russia are emerging as potential world leaders, while Turkey may reassert a leadership role in the divided Arab world. These countries will certainly remain outside the US orbit, and many other countries, realizing that their interests are no longer served by an alliance with the United States, will slowly but surely join them.