Iran sanctions: Why India is in a tight spot
(Read article summary)India is Iran's largest customer of crude oil, so it cannot cut off ties with the Iranian regime quickly. Yet it shares US concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions.
As the world’s largest importer of Iranian crude oil, and as a close strategic ally of the United States, India is in a tight spot.
The US wants to put pressure on the Iranian regime to give up any ambitions it may have toward developing nuclear weapons. For the Indian government and Indian companies, this presents a quandary. How to satisfy Western allies – and abide by US-led sanctions against companies that do business with Iran – while also securing the energy needs of its large, high-growth economy?
Iran says its nuclear program – which has made strides despite heavy international sanctions and a mysterious spate of assassinations against Iranian nuclear scientists – is purely for civilian energy use. Just this week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced that Iran was now capable of building its own centrifuges for enriching uranium for nuclear fuel rods.
“The arrogant powers cannot monopolize nuclear technology,” Mr. Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying on Iranian state television. “They tried to prevent us by issuing sanctions and resolutions but failed.”
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