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Donald Trump has announced secondary sanctions on Iranian oil in Washington, in order to strengthen its “maximum pressure” campaign on the Islamic Republic amid talks over its nuclear program.
The US president said Thursday that he has frozen anyone who buys Iranian oil or products from doing business with the United States, strengthening the crackdown on Tehran’s important revenue streams and further narrowing down China, the biggest importer.
“All purchases of Iranian oil or petrochemical products should be stopped now!” Trump wrote on his true social platform.
“A country or person who purchases a quantity of oil or petrochemists from Iran will be subject to immediate secondary sanctions. They are not permitted to do business with the United States in any way, in any way, in form.”
After unveiling its “maximum pressure” strategy in February, Trump has expanded sanctions targeting the energy sector, holding a tight boundary on Iran.
It was unclear when and how the latest measures would be implemented.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Finance said: “We were very clear and consistent with what we did up to this point. Anyone who, including refineries, buyers, brokers, shippers, and anyone who is engaging or trying to promote the stages of Iran’s oil supply chain, is at a significant risk of sanctions.”
The National Security Council did not immediately respond to requests for details.
The Trump announcement was postponed to Thursday after fourth-round talks between the US and Iran, scheduled to take place in Rome this weekend. The Omani Foreign Minister acting as a mediator said the delays were made “for logistics reasons” in X.
Following the announcement, oil jumped, and international benchmark Brent crude rose 1.8% to settle at $62.13 a barrel. US Marker West Texas Intermediate made a similar profit to settle at $59.24/barrel.
Iran’s top diplomats, US envoys Steve Witkov and Abbas Aragci, held three talks in Muscat and Rome as the Trump administration presses Tehran to agree to a deal that reverses nuclear advancements.
China – the US is caught up in a fierce trade war – is the country most exposed to Trump’s sweeping secondary sanctions. Beijing accounts for the majority of approximately 1.5 million barrels per day Iran was shipped.
“Lead to take it, that means China has to choose commercial ties between Iran and the United States,” said Bob McNally, a former adviser to President George W. Bush and now head of the Rapidan Energy Group. “If China chooses to halt Iran’s oil imports, Tehran will have a hard time redirecting these barrels to other countries.”
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“Unless China opposes the US, Iran is facing crude exports and catastrophic losses in revenue. This step should move more quickly forced diplomacy towards either a diplomatic agreement or a military conflict,” he added.
Oil prices have fallen sharply this year amid fears of the global recession caused by Trump’s trade war. OPEC+ production is also rising, with Washington giving it a lot of room to slap sanctions against crude oil-producing countries without hurting American consumers.
In March, Trump said the US would impose a 25% tariff on all imports from countries that buy oil from Venezuela as part of a pressure campaign against President Nicolas Maduro’s government.
