Washington, January 29: The US Senate voted Thursday to slap tough new sanctions on Iran, targeting its thirst for gasoline imports over Tehran’s nuclear program.
The sweeping measure, which passed by voice vote, must now be blended with a similar bill in the House of Representatives to forge a compromise measure for both sides to approve and send to President Barack Obama.
The Senate bill aims to punish non-Iranian firms that do business in Iran’s energy sector or help the Iran produce or import refined petroleum products like gasoline by blocking them from doing business in the US market.
Iran, which denies the US charges that it seeks to develop nuclear weapons, lacks refining capability and relies on imports to satisfy 40 percent of its thirst for gasoline.
US Senators have increasingly favored unilateral sanctions.
The bill would close US markets to Iranian carpets, caviar, and pistachio nuts — which then-president Bill Clinton exempted from a US trade embargo.
It also requires that the president report to congress when non-US companies become eligible for sanctions, under a 1996 law that punishes investments of more than 20 million dollars in Iran’s energy sector.
Iran gets most of its gasoline imports from the Swiss firm Vitol, the Swiss/Dutch firm Trafigura, France’s Total, the Swiss firm Glencore and British Petroleum, as well as the Indian firm Reliance.
The measure also expands the 1996 law to cover oil and gas pipelines and tankers, and requires the administration to freeze the assets of any Iranians.
It would also enable US investors, including states’ pension funds, to divest from energy firms that do business with Iran.
It would prohibit the US government from purchasing goods from firms that do business in Iran’s energy sector, or provide sensitive communications technology to Iran — a measure that could affect telecommunications giants Siemens and Nokia.
US lawmakers have also expressed growing frustration at resistance from other countries — notably China — to impose new UN sanctions on Iran, and have even accused Beijing of expanding its commercial interests there.
—Agencies