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The payment mechanism remains uncertain, but India is expected to continue paying for Iranian oil in euros and rupees, sources said. Iran would use rupees to pay for rice, drugs and other items, while the balance of revenues would be held in escrow until sanctions are lifted, the Economic Times reported.
Bloomberg News later reported that South Korea, in addition to India, has agreed to the outlines for a waiver with the United States. Bloomberg also reported that funds from Indian imports would go into an escrow account.
Sources told both news outlets an announcement from the administration could come in the next few days. The State Department did not immediately return a request for comment.
Several other oil importing nations are also seeking waivers.
Japan’s top spokesperson for the government on Thursday said the nation had yet to receive a waiver, Reuters reported. China, Iran’s biggest oil customer, has also sought a waiver, and its biggest refiners have reportedly halted imports in November until Beijing gets clarity from Washington.
U.S. sanctions have cut Iran’s exports by roughly a third, with shipments shrinking to roughly 1.7 million to 1.9 million barrels per day by the end of September, according to estimates from several sources.
The sanctions were developed by the Obama administration, which marshaled international support for the policy in order to put pressure on Iran to negotiate restrictions on its nuclear technology program. The United States and five world powers reached a deal with Iran in 2015 that paved the way for sanctions relief the following year.
The Trump administration, hoping to secure a tougher nuclear accord and force changes to Iran’s foreign policy, pulled the United States out of the accord in May over widespread international objection. The European Union is trying to preserve the nuclear deal, but the continent’s multinational companies have dropped business ties with Iran under threat of U.S. sanctions.
The Obama administration allowed some foreign firms to gradually wind down their purchases from Iran so long as their home country reduced imports by 20 percent every 180 days. The Trump administration has not announced hard terms for waivers.
