The United States Warns China for Buying Crude Oil

The Financial Times reported, The United States has warned China that it will not turn a blind eye to rising Iranian oil exports to Chinese ports. The report stated that Washington has noticed a substantial increase in Iranian crude shipments to China. It reminded Beijing that there are sanctions in place against the Islamic Republic even today. An unnamed official told the FT, “We’ve told the Chinese that we will continue to enforce our sanctions. There will be no tacit green light.”

The shipments of Crude from Iran to China are being ramped up. An average of 306,000 BPD last year has increased to 856,000 BPD of Iranian Crude in this month. It is a 129% rise over February. The comprehensive strategic partnership between Iran and China goes hand in hand with China’s interest in Iranian Crude oil.

The initiative expects a trade of $600 billion between the two countries over the next decade. Apart from this, China’s Belt and Road initiative (BRI) attempts to strengthen the regional political, economic, and strategic ties, focusing on the energy industry. However, the most important reason for the Iranian Crude is that Iran is selling it at a deep discount because of the sanctions.

The low price of Iranian Crude makes it attractive for other Asian buyers as well. Many of these countries have been hunting for alternatives to Middle Eastern OPEC oil because of its high prices. Regarding the sanctions, Iran has demanded that The United States lift the sanctions before negotiations on the nuclear deal. The U.S. wants to negotiate first and later lift the sanctions.