Türkiye reduces imports of Iranian oil.
The last major consumer of the commodity in the country yielded to pressure from the American government, which imposed economic sanctions on the regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Filipe Mauro - Opera Mundi - After three months of resistance to the new package of economic sanctions imposed by the US on the regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Turkey became on Friday (March 30) the last major consumer of Iranian oil to cut off part of its supply of the commodity.
The 20% reduction in these imports was announced by Tupras, the country's largest petrochemical company, and contradicts the Ankara government's criticism of what it described as unilateral US policy.
The new scenario was drawn up following an announcement made by President Barack Obama also on Friday. In a memorandum, he considered that the world possesses sufficient oil reserves, which would open the way for new sanctions on Iran without fear of a disruption in the supply of the product to the international community.
The new sanctions imposed by the US do not directly target Iranian oil-importing corporations or countries. However, under these conditions, persisting in trade relations with Tehran will result in blocked access to the US financial system. In the case of Turkey, the main victim of this barrier would be the assets of the country's largest state-owned bank, Halkbank.
One of the cornerstones that reinforced the US determination to isolate Iran was the guarantee that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil producer, would supply all the additional demand from the international market.
Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz revealed that his country would compensate for 10% of its cuts with supplies from Libya, or eventually, Saudi Arabia. Last year alone, Turkey consumed 180 Iranian barrels per day, equivalent to approximately 7% of Tehran's oil exports.
Ironically, less than a day ago, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan concluded a visit to Iran, where he reinforced the two nations' interest in strengthening their economic ties.
Turkey now joins nations like Japan and South Africa, which are also major consumers of the Iranian commodity, but have decided to succumb to the new series of embargoes.