The US unveiled aggressive new sanctions against Iran on Monday, directly targeting the rial currency for the first time and also the auto sector, a key source of jobs and revenue.
The measures, which could wreak more economic deprivation inside Iran, came days before a presidential election in the country and followed Tehran’s refusal to cede ground in stalled world power talks on its nuclear program.
They were accompanied by new US warnings of a “painful” and “powerful” escalation of the sanctions regime, as US President Barack Obama seeks to convince the Islamic Republic that the price of uranium enrichment is too high.
Obama signed an executive order authorizing sanctions on foreign banks and financial institutions that make transactions in rial or keep accounts denominated in the currency outside the country.
The ninth set of sanctions signed by Obama against Iran will also penalize anyone involved in the significant sale of goods and services to Iran’s auto industry, a move that could hit foreign car giants in Europe and Asia.
A US official said the strategy represents a significant escalation of the sanctions as, for the first time, Washington was attacking the rial, which has lost two-thirds of its value over the past two years.
“The idea here is to make the rial essentially unusable outside of Iran,” the official said.
Analysts say the move by Obama was a sign that the administration was wedded to a strategy of ever increasing economic pressure on Iran as the showdown over its nuclear program hits a critical point.
“It’s a serious escalation of sanctions because the administration is blacklisting the auto sector, which is the second-largest employer in Iran after the energy sector,” said Mark Dubowitz of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Dubowitz said the move against the auto sector also reflected the administration’s concern that it could be used to procure “dual use” technologies for enriching uranium.
The new sanctions were announced as the campaign gathers pace ahead of June 14 elections to succeed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
While the campaign has featured debate on the economic pain exerted by US and international sanctions, the poll is unlikely to alter Tehran’s nuclear policy, which is controlled by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
All presidential hopefuls — including Iranian Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili — have said the nuclear project will proceed whoever wins.
Washington has warned that it will not rule out military action against Iran’s nuclear program and that time is running out for diplomacy to succeed.
Talks between Iran and the permanent five members of the UN Security Council plus Germany are on hold pending the election.
Iran denies that its nuclear enrichment activities are intended to produce a nuclear bomb and says the program is purely intended for power generation.
A US official said Iran must address the international community’s concerns or “face ever more powerful sanctions, ever more painful economic hardship and ever increasing isolation.”
However, Karim Sadjadpour, an Iran analyst with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said that the new measures were not a game-changer.
“I don’t see them giving Ayatollah Khamenei existential angst,” he said. “Middle and upper-class Iranians who can no longer buy Mercedes, Peugeot and South Korean automobiles will be inconvenienced and offended by this edict, but I don’t see them taking to the streets because of it.”
FRAUD ALLEGED: The leader of an opposition alliance made allegations of electoral irregularities and called for a protest in Tirana as European leaders are to meet Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party scored a large victory in parliamentary elections, securing him his fourth term, official results showed late on Tuesday. The Socialist Party won 52.1 percent of the vote on Sunday compared with 34.2 percent for an alliance of opposition parties led by his main rival Sali Berisha, according to results released by the Albanian Central Election Commission. Diaspora votes have yet to be counted, but according to initial results, Rama was also leading there. According to projections, the Socialist Party could have more lawmakers than in 2021 elections. At the time, it won 74 seats in the
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
CANCER: Jose Mujica earned the moniker ‘world’s poorest president’ for giving away much of his salary and living a simple life on his farm, with his wife and dog Tributes poured in on Tuesday from across Latin America following the death of former Uruguayan president Jose “Pepe” Mujica, an ex-guerrilla fighter revered by the left for his humility and progressive politics. He was 89. Mujica, who spent a dozen years behind bars for revolutionary activity, lost his battle against cancer after announcing in January that the disease had spread and he would stop treatment. “With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of our comrade Pepe Mujica. President, activist, guide and leader. We will miss you greatly, old friend,” Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi wrote on X. “Pepe, eternal,” a cyclist shouted out minutes later,
RSS