Despite the impact on prices, the United States will seek to reduce Iran's oil revenue to zero



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An oil tanker is loaded into a Saudi Aramco refinery and terminal at Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, in May. (Ahmed Jadallah / Reuters)

The Trump administration maintains its plan to zero Iranian oil revenues with the aim of isolating the country and forcing its leaders to change their behavior, said Monday a senior official of the State Department. At the same time, the United States would work with countries that import Iranian crude "on a case-by-case basis", signaling that the Trump administration might not immediately impose sanctions on those who continue to import oil from Iran. Iran beyond a month of November. "Our goal is to increase the pressure on the Iranian regime by reducing its revenues to zero on crude oil sales," said Brian Hook, director of state policy planning, at the time. 39, a point of press. "We are ready to work with countries that reduce their imports on a case-by-case basis, but as with our other sanctions, we are not seeking to grant waivers or licenses."

Hook's Comments Follow A The turbulent week of the oil market began last Tuesday when another State Department official called on buyers to stop importing Iranian crude before November 4th.

In a briefing with reporters, Washington probably did not grant waivers. foreign companies that continue to do business with Iran. After the remarks, the US crude jumped more than 8% and closed at over $ 74 a barrel – a first since November 2014.

The peak was the last fallout from the decision of the administration Trump to abandon Iran's historic nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions against Iran – a move that has tended relations between the United States and other world powers that support the agreement . imports, including India and Turkey. Last week, the Turkish Minister of Economy said that his country did not intend to comply with the United States' request to stop importing Iranian oil, qualifying the demand "non-binding" for Turkey – a scathing reprimand from an ally of NATO. White House officials expressed dissatisfaction with the State Department's remarks because they disagreed with another priority of the Trump administration: to prevent oil prices from rising too high before the mid-term elections. According to analysts, the shortage could hit US taxpayers at the gas pump while they expect a drop in gas prices after summer.

On Saturday, President Trump praised an agreement with Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz. "

" I just spoke to King Salman of Saudi Arabia and I explained to him that because of the turmoil and d in Venezuela, I ask Saudi Arabia to increase the oil production, perhaps up to 2,000,000 barrels, to make up the difference ", Trump tweeted ." Prices are high! He accepted! "

Since then, the White House has rejected the claim that Salman accepted Trump's request, and on Monday, Hook expressed his confidence that US sanctions policy would not lead to massive shortages. but analysts have expressed doubts as to whether Saudi Arabia can increase production as much as Trump has described

but we are confident that there is enough capacity to oil reserve on a global scale, "said Mr. Hook

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