Tehran vows retaliation to fresh EU sanctions

Irish Sun Monday 23rd January, 2012

BRUSSELS/TEHRAN The European Union Monday imposed fresh sanctions on Iran, banning the import of Iranian crude oil and petroleum products and a freeze on the assets of the country's central bank, to which Tehran immediately responded by threatening to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The measures, adopted in Brussels by the EU's 27 foreign ministers, include an immediate embargo on new contracts for crude oil and petroleum products. But it has allowed existing contracts to be run until July.

The EU diplomats formally adopted the oil embargo and termed the measures as part of a twin-track move to discourage Tehran from pursuing its alleged nuclear weapons programme. Iran maintains its nuclear programme is only for peaceful purposes.

Meanwhile, a senior member of Iran's parliament said that the Islamic Republic would shut the entry point to the Gulf if its oil exports are hit.

"If any disruption happens regarding the sale of Iranian oil, the Strait of Hormuz will definitely be closed," Mohammad Kossari, deputy head of parliament's foreign affairs and national security committee, told the semi-official Fars news agency.

The EU has also blocked trade with Iran in gold, diamonds and precious metals. It is also blocking the export to Iran of "key" petrochemical equipment and technology from the EU.

The sanctions come because of Iran's "defiance of six U.N. Security Council resolutions and its refusal to enter negotiations over its nuclear programme," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement from Brussels, Belgium.

Hague described the embargo as part of "an unprecedented set of sanctions. I think this shows the resolve of the European Union on this issue".

Iran exports 2.2. million barrels of oil a day, with about 18% bound for European markets, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The Iranian government gets about half its revenue from oil exports, according to the EIA.

The EU ban came a day after a U.S. aircraft carrier, accompanied by a flotilla that included French and British warships, made a voyage into the Strait of Hormuz, in defiance of Iranian hostility.

The sanctions will compound problems for Iran, which is already facing U.S. sanctions imposed on December 31. The Western powers believe that choking exports would force Iran to agree to curbs on its nuclear programme.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has voiced unhappiness over Iran's nuclear programme, called the EU sanctions a "step in the right direction" but said Iran was still developing atomic weapons.