US companies do business with Iran
Finance Buzz: The United States, which ceremoniously keeps slapping more and more sanctions against Iran all the time, has quietly allowed several American companies to skirt these trade embargoes and do business with Tehran over the past decade. Armed with information secured after filing a Freedom of Information lawsuit, the New York Times reported on Friday that the US Government granted nearly 10,000 exceptions, enabling the companies do business worth billions of dollars with Iran and other countries it regards as sponsors of terrorism.
Companies ranging from Kraft Food and Pepsi to some of the biggest American banks reportedly benefited from the exemptions granted under a law allowing trade on humanitarian considerations. But this law had been written so broadly as to include even items such as cigarettes, beer, soda, chewing gum, hot sauce and weight-loss remedies.
The Times report went on to say that some American companies were even permitted to deal with Iranian firms suspected of involvement in terrorism or weapons proliferation. One US firm was allowed to bid on a pipeline job to help Iran sell natural gas to Europe even though the US opposes such deals. Records show that the US had approved sale of luxury food items to chain stores owned by blacklisted banks, despite requirements that potential purchasers be scrutinized for just such connections, the report said. The Obama administration, however, maintains that the exceptions are insignificant when compared to the overall force of America’s trade sanctions, which it regards are the toughest in the world. Stuart A. Levey, Under Secretary in the Treasury Department dealing with sanctions, asserted that focusing on the exceptions “misses the forest for the trees”, adding: “No one can doubt that we are serious about this.” While terming the exemptions inconsequential, Levey maintained that the goods sold to Iran amounted to only 0.02 percent of all US exports in the first quarter of this year. According to him, these imports from American sources were just a fraction of one per cent of all Iranian imports.
Iran, Turkey to up security cooperation
Press TV--Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar has called for promotion of security cooperation with neighboring Turkey.
The top Iranian official sat down with his Turkish opposite number Besir Atalay in Istanbul late Friday where they called for both sides to work together closely on security issues, reported IRNA.
Iran is prepared to enhance its cooperation with Turkey in line with enforcing the provisions of the final statement of today’s ministerial meeting of the ECO (Economic Cooperation Organization) member states," said the visiting Iranian official.
He said the two sides should continue to work together closely within the Iran-Turkey Joint Cooperation Commission, calling for closer border cooperation as well.
The Turkish interior minister, in turn, expressed content over the trend of security cooperation between Tehran and Ankara.
He also called for a meeting of deputy interior ministers of both countries in the near future to follow up on the agreements reached at the joint cooperation commission.
The two sides reiterated that they will spare no effort to help enforce the provisions of the final statement of the ECO meeting.
The statement emphasized that broader regional cooperation will promote the living standards of the people in the region.
The Istanbul Declaration emphasized the importance of achieving the targets set in the ECO 2015 Vision Statement to upgrade the living standards and prop up prosperity as well as sustainable development of the ECO member countries.
The declaration called for broader trade cooperation among member states, demanding the removal of technical impediments and restrictions preventing free trade through establishment of free trade zones.
The member states also expressed solidarity with the Palestinian people who are living under severe economic conditions.
ECO is an intergovernmental regional organization established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, with the aim of promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation among member states.