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EU seeks to delay embargo of Iranian oil

13 January 2012 12:35 (UTC +04:00)

The delay will reportedly allow countries such as Greece, Italy and Spain to find alternative supply sources.

Phasing in the European oil embargo would ease the worries of Italy, Greece and Spain, which accounted for 68.5 percent of EU imports from Iran in 2010, according to European Commission data. Meanwhile, Nigel Kushner, a London-based international- trade lawyer specializing in Iran sanctions, said the UK, France and Germany are said to have pushed for a three-month delay on oil embargo. The EU foreign ministers are expected to hold a meeting later this month on January 23 to discuss the proposed embargo on Iran’s oil exports.

EU members have so far failed to reach a final agreement on such details as the exact timing of the sanctions and their diplomats say it may take months before sanctions actually enter into force given the critical economic conditions facing European countries.

EU countries buy about 500,000 barrels of Iran’s oil per day, making the union one of the big markets for Iranian crude.

European measures against Iran’s oil industry will complement US sanctions announced on New Year’s Eve that aim to make it impossible for most refineries to buy Iranian crude.