US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed at a meeting at the White House on Wednesday that the United States they will work to reduce Iran’s oil exports to China by putting economic pressure on Iran. This was reported by the news portal Axios with reference to two American officials familiar with the matter, writes TASR according to a Reuters report.
“We agreed to put maximum pressure on Iran, for example, in connection with the sale of Iranian oil to China,” a senior US official said. Reuters reports that more than 80 percent of Iran’s oil exports go to China. If this flow were to decrease, Iran, which is subject to extensive Western sanctions, would suffer a drop in oil revenues.
After them, the head of Iranian diplomacy, Abbas Arákči, spoke the hope that the United States will refrain from “threats and coercion” so that negotiations can continue. The US announced shortly after the joint negotiations new sanctions aimed at limiting oil exports from Iran.
The spokesman of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaíl Bakaji, pointed out on Tuesday that the visit of the Israeli prime minister to the White House could have a devastating effect on diplomacy.
In his meeting with Netanyahu, Trump insisted that nuclear negotiations with Iran must continue. According to his words, he prefers to conclude an agreement with Iran. According to his office, Netanyahu insisted on the meeting “the security needs of the State of Israel in connection with the negotiations”. The leaders are said to have agreed on further coordination of steps.
