Sanctions reimposed by the United States on Iran came into force on Monday, a day after thousands of protestors, chanting “Death to America”, took to the streets against the curbs and to mark the anniversary of the seizure of the US Embassy during the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Reuters reported.
The US’ curbs are aimed at “fundamentally altering the behaviour of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said. The US has placed 12 demands that Tehran must meet to get the sanctions lifted, including ending support for terrorism and ending military engagement in Syria. “Maximum pressure means maximum pressure,” AP quoted Pompeo as saying.
The restrictions, that were imposed on the isolated country prior to the signing of the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal, cover the shipping, financial and energy sectors.
On Friday, Pompeo had said Washington will announce the names of the countries, that have been exempted from sanctions for importing oil from Iran, on November 5. Unidentified officials told Bloomberg that India, Japan and South Korea are among the eight countries.
During an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Pompeo avoided queries about exemptions granted to India and China. “Watch what we do,” he said. “We have already taken more crude oil off the market than at any time…and the march to zero continues.”
“Watch the Iranians. That’s who really understands the importance and the impact of the effort that we’re undertaking,” Pompeo said. “The rial has fallen to 140,000 rial to the dollar, and has had an enormous impact already. And we are working diligently to make sure we support the Iranian people and that we direct our activity towards ensuring that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s maligned behaviour is changed.”
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