Posted on 03/15/2012 9:10:40 PM PDT by Little Pig
WASHINGTON: The Obama administration is threatening to impose sanctions on India over its continued economic ties with Iran amid disagreements between Washington and New Delhi over how much and how soon the latter is reducing oil imports from the (in US eyes) pariah nation.
India has "failed" to reduce its purchase of Iranian oil and if it doesn't do so, President Barack Obama may be "forced" to impose sanction, unnamed administration officials were cited as telling Bloomberg wire service. A decision in this regard could come as early as June 28, they added, implicitly offering New Delhi a ten- week window to show a decline in Iranian oil imports.
Indian officials have contested the US assessment by insisting New Delhi is scaling down Iranian oil imports with more reduction in the pipeline, but that concession has been offset by India's commerce ministry's well-publicized efforts to ramp up trade with Iran in other areas, a move that has not gone unnoticed by the powerful pro-Israeli lobby in US.
The potent American Jewish Committee (AJC), which holds Israeli interests dear to its heart, raged against an Indian business delegation being shepherded to Iran by the Indian commerce ministry, pointing to it as an example of New Delhi's perfidy at a time Israel is India's close military and counter-terrorism partner.
That prompted a strong rebuttal from the Indian embassy in Washington, accusing certain lobbies of presenting a "distorted picture of New Delhi's foreign policy objectives and energy security needs" by selective use of data about its imports from Iran.
But the anti-Iran lobby in US has been galvanized by a report on Wednesday from the International Energy Agency (IEA), showing that India and South Korea "sharply" increased their oil imports from Iran in January.
However, India has informally conveyed to Washington that it has advised its refineries, many of which are geared towards processing Iranian crude, to seek alternate supplies and gradually reduce their dependence on Iran. That process may take some time to kick in since annual crude contracts with Iran are April to March, so the reduction will start to show from next month.
India has enough time to show compliance since the US law relating to sanctions vis-a-vis Iran kicks in only if countries don't make a "significant" cuts in their Iranian crude oil purchases during the first half of this year. The law does not specify by what percentage a nation must reduce its imports to qualify for an exemption from sanctions, so countries like South Korea and Japan have been negotiating with Washington the quantum of cuts they can live with. India is also believed to be in discussion with U.S in this matter.
While the impending Indian compliance has been quietly acknowledged by some Obama administration officials, the hardline pro-Israeli lobby in US is champing at the bit. At a Congressional hearing earlier this month Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told lawmakers that while the US remains concerned about India's links with Iran, she acknowledged that New Delhi is ''heading in the right direction''.
"In fact, I think in a number of instances, the actions of countries and their banks are better than the public statements that we sometimes hear them making," Clinton said in an indication of the Indian assurances.
The Obama administration itself is in a bind over squeezing too hard and tightening oil supplies across the world. While Washington has offered to wean India and other countries from Iranian oil by arranging supplies from Saudi Arabia and Iraq, that could come at its own expense and rising oil prices. Already, gas prices are close to $ 4 a gallon at US pumps, and it is a well-acknowledged fact that the fortunes of US politicians running for high office is linked to pain (or otherwise) at the pump.
There goes our “tech” support.
The dummy head Obama may or may not be a muslim......but, he always favored Pakistan/Indonesia (islamic countries) from his childhood. He should not F with India because NOTHING good will come out of it for the USA or India. Only good things will be for the enemies of both countries.
Then again.....the mofo in the White House may just be desiring that bad outcome for USA and India.
This is pure diversion tactic........The failure of this dummy head to contain Iran is now India’s fault. Let us see......this dummy head shuts down Oil production in the US......this dummy head allows Canada and Brazil to sell oil to China.....this dummy head leaves no choice for India but to rely on Iran’s oil and gas.....then, he blames India for his failure to contain Iran???? WTF is going on in this world?
Both USA and India are in danger because of this dummy head.....The two countries have MOST in common in the LONG TERM (10, 20, 30 and 50 years).....!
Maybe terrorist attacks against explicitly Indian targets have all come from Pak, but recall that just recently, Iranian terrorists bombed a vehicle attached to the Israeli embassy on the streets of Delhi.
Attack our enemy obama. You can’t help yourself.
This psychopath in a second term will be the end of us
obama is NOT a dummy,stupid,ignorant, or any of the other similar labels;he is fully aware of the damage he is doing to the U.S. and Western civilization.Every blow is deliberate and calculated,from ordering Christian symbols be covered at Georgetown University before his speech there to the abortion mandate being imposed on Catholic and other hospitals to undermining stable regimes in North Africa to bowing before Muslim potemtates to hiding his own past to whatever today’s outrage may be.obama is smart and evil.Underestimating one’s opponent is seldom a winning stategy.
India should tell Obama to Pound Sand.
Gee, isn’t it great that the world loves us again now that the evil Boooosh is out of the White House?
You are correct on that one, but note that the attack was not against Indians. Similar attacks against Israeli agents were carried out in several countries.
I hope your post will be read by those who intend to stay home on election day if their choice is not nominated.
Obama is pure evil. Just look at all his past associations. Hannity has been vetting them one by one. Every one of those SOB’s have clearly stated objectives for demise of United States.
While the attack in Delhi wasn’t directed at India, it did happen on Indian soil in the national capital. It also injured several Indians who were passengers in a vehicle traveling next to the one that the bomb was planted on. That Iran would operate on Indian soil to commit attacks is distressing to the security community in Delhi, and no doubt has instigated multiple discreet discussions between Centre and the Iranian embassy.
While the attack in Delhi wasn’t directed at India, it did happen on Indian soil in the national capital. It also injured several Indians who were passengers in a vehicle traveling next to the one that the bomb was planted on. That Iran would operate on Indian soil to commit attacks is distressing to the security community in Delhi, and no doubt has instigated multiple discreet discussions between Centre and the Iranian embassy.
That attack in Mumbai a couple of years ago was 1000 times more evil, more planned and stronger than anything happened in New Delhi attack on Israeli officials. Pakistan based terrorists had the temerity to plan a bomb attack on the Indian parliament itself a few years earlier.
Come to think of it, G.W. Bush was actually popular in India! The then running bureaucracy in India wanted the reds to win the US election as GW had made some historic foreign policy changes vis-a-vis India..
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