MOSCOW, January 14 (RIA Novosti) – The United States is concerned about Iranian-Russian talks over an oil-for-goods deal and could impose sanctions, Reuters has reported.
The news agency cited Iranian and Russian sources as saying that the two states are negotiating a swap that could see Russia buy up to 500,000 barrels a day of Iranian oil in exchange for Russian equipment and goods.
Caitlin Hayden, spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council, told Reuters on Monday that US Secretary of State John Kerry had expressed concern over the reported negotiations to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov during their Monday meeting in Paris.
Washington expects that the reported deal would increase Iran’s oil exports, which have been cut by more than half to about 1 million barrels a day by sanctions led by the US and European states over Tehran’s nuclear program.
"If the reports are true, such a deal would raise serious concerns as it would be inconsistent with the terms of the P5+1 agreement with Iran and could potentially trigger US sanctions," Hayden told Reuters.
The agreement with the P5+1 group, comprised of Germany and the permanent UN Security Council members, includes a freeze on efforts to further decrease Iran's crude oil exports without permitting major buyers to boost their imports.
