Turkey Seeks Washington to Extend Sanctions Waiver on Iran Oil

Date: 17 April 2019 - 21:36

News ID: ۶۴۹۵۸

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Turkey expects the United States to extend a waiver granted to Ankara to continue oil purchases from Iran without violating U.S. sanctions, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said.
Along with sanctions, Washington has also granted waivers to eight economies that had reduced their purchases of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue buying it without incurring sanctions for six more months. They were China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Turkey, Italy and Greece.
Speaking to reporters in Washington, Kalin said Turkey has already reduced its purchases of Iranian oil, without providing a level. Ankara has conveyed its message that its waiver should be extended, Kalin said.
"We made it clear that only we’d like to continue buying oil from Iran but also Iran is a neighboring country ... People should not expect Turkey to turn its back on Iran just like that,” he said.
Turkey did not support U.S. sanctions policy on Iran and did not think it would yield the desired result, Kalin said.