Iran’s oil exports would remain almost unscathed if a series of old UN sanctions are reimposed on the country as part of the so-called snapback mechanism that European powers have threatened to trigger to force Tehran to change its nuclear policy, according to a report.
The Monday report by the Fars news agency said that Iran’s oil export had not been the direct target of six United Nations sanctions resolutions that were adopted between 2006 and 2010 in response to the country’s alleged non-compliance with UN nuclear regulations.
The report said the re-imposition of the sanctions would have almost no impact on Iran’s ability to supply oil to international markets, adding that they could only affect the country’s oil-related financial dealings with other countries.
France, Britain, and Germany, as parties to a 2015 international deal on Iran’s nuclear program, have said they would use their rights under the deal to restore sanctions on Iran before a late October deadline when a UN Security Council resolution enshrining the deal expires.
Iran has condemned the announcement, saying the three countries have been influenced by the US, which withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, and its attempts to force Iran to dismantle its peaceful nuclear program.
However, the report by Fars said Iran has no concerns about the impacts of snapback on its oil export as a key driver of its economy, adding that the country has been exporting oil at record levels despite being subject to a unilateral and harsh regime of US sanctions over the past seven years.
Recent data by international tanker tracking services show that Iran had exported nearly 1.8 million barrels per day of crude oil in May, on par with figures seen in September last year and one of the highest reported since the US toughened its sanctions on Iran in 2019.
