The principal targets of a US effort to use economic leverage to end the Iran war largely shrugged off Washington’s announcement.
The US Treasury secretary yesterday threatened wide-ranging secondary sanctions against countries doing business with Iran, but he didn’t outline any specific sanctions against Chinese banks: Beijing is the main buyer of Iran’s oil, and the economic plan consequently had a “China-sized hole,” Semafor’s climate and energy editor noted.
Beijing largely downplayed Washington’s threats, saying it would “safeguard its own rights and interests.” Iran, too, dismissed the US measures, with its foreign minister saying American leaders “are desperate.” Markets, meanwhile, appeared “largely unfazed” by the announcement, ING said, with oil prices steady.
