WASHINGTON: The United States announced on Monday it will no longer grantsanctions exemptions to Iran’s oil customers, potentially punishing alliessuch as India as it tries to squeeze Tehran’s top export.

The White House said that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — closeUS allies that back President Donald Trump’s hawkish stance againstregional rival Iran — would work to make up the difference in oil to ensurethat global markets are not rocked.

“This decision is intended to bring Iran’s oil exports to zero, denying theregime its principal source of revenue,” the White House said in astatement.

“The Trump administration and our allies are determined to sustain andexpand the maximum economic pressure campaign against Iran to end theregime’s destabilizing activity threatening the United States, our partnersand allies and security in the Middle East,” it said.

Eight governments were initially given six-month reprieves from theunilateral US sanctions on Iran. They include India, which has warm tieswith Washington but disagrees on the US insistence that Iran is a threat.

Other countries that will be affected include China and Turkey, opening upnew friction in contentious relationships if the United States goes aheadwith sanctions over buying Iranian oil.

The others — Greece, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan — have alreadyheavily reduced their purchases from Iran.

Trump last year withdrew the United States from an accord negotiated by hispredecessor, Barack Obama, under which Iran drastically scaled back itsnuclear program in return for promises of sanctions relief.

The Trump administration, backed by Saudi Arabia and Israel, has insteadunilaterally imposed sanctions and demanded that other countries followsuit.

US officials say that they are aiming at choking off Iranian revenue so asto reduce the clerical regime’s regional clout, notably its support formilitants groups such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah. -APP/AFP