Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 4/ Trend M. Moezzi
The United States' new sanctions against Iran are a sign of its failures in the Middle East, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported a member of Iran's Majlis (parliament) as saying.
The decision to levy sanctions against the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) was political not economic, said Parviz Soroori, a member of the Majlis' national security commission.
Mr. Soroori added that the U.S. and the United Nations will soon discover the negative consequences of Washington's newest sanctions. European companies aren't ready to ignore their own interests and cooperate with the U.S. in cutting off trade with Iran.
On the last day of 2011, U.S. President Barack Obama signed a law enacting sanctions against Iran's Central Bank. The new sanctions punish foreign institutions doing business with the Central Bank and essentially force them to choose between doing business with Iran or the U.S.
The U.S. Congress granted Mr. Obama six months to impose the sanctions because the administration was worried about how they would affect the world's oil markets and economy.