TT On-The-Go
TT Feed
| Japan may win waiver from Iran sanctions: report |
|
 |
 |
 |
Font Size 
|
Japan may be granted some waivers from the U.S.-led sanctions against Iran, Kyodo News reported Friday, citing Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba.
"Steady progress was made in a good atmosphere" in respect to both Japan's cooperation with the U.S. to address the Iranian nuclear issue and request a waiver from the sanctions, Gemba told reporters in Tokyo when asked about the outcome of the second round of talks on the matter between the two countries.
He also said the Japanese government wants to "conclude the consultations as soon as possible", although he refused to go into detail as negotiations are still ongoing with the United States.
"The discussions were held in a cooperative manner and I can say there was progress toward a final agreement," Tsukasa Uemura, deputy director general of the Middle Eastern and African Affairs Bureau at the Foreign Ministry, told reporters in Washington after a one-day meeting involving senior officials from the two countries.
Uemura declined to comment on what the U.S. side said about Japan's request for a waiver from the sanctions, merely saying the two countries agreed to continue talks.
Under the sanctions, a new U.S. law bans foreign financial institutions found to have done business with Iran's central bank, which clears oil transactions, from operating in the United States.
The law also says the United States could grant a country an exemption from the ban if it has "significantly reduced its volume of crude oil purchases from Iran."
Uemura represented the Japanese delegation, while the U.S. side was headed by Robert Einhorn, the State Department's special adviser for nonproliferation and arms control, and Daniel Glaser, the Treasury Department's assistant secretary for terrorist financing.
Washington is putting pressure on its allies such as Japan to reduce its oil imports from Iran.
Japan imports about 10% of its oil from Iran.
(Source: MarketWatch)
  Socialize this Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay in touch and receive all of TT updates right in your feed reader
|