US announces new Iran oil sanctions shortly after indirect talks in Oman

The United States on Friday, February 6, announced new sanctions aimed at curbing Iran’s oil exports, moments after Washington and Tehran concluded a day of indirect talks in Oman.

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said Iran uses oil revenue to fund “destabilizing activities around the world” and to intensify repression within the country.

Pigott said US President Donald Trump, remains committed to driving down what the administration describes as Iran’s illicit oil and petrochemical exports under its maximum pressure campaign.

According to the State Department, the new measures include blocking transactions involving 14 vessels accused of transporting Iranian oil, including ships flagged in Turkey, India and the United Arab Emirates. Sanctions were also imposed on 15 entities and two individuals.

The United States has, since Trump’s first administration, enforced sanctions aimed at compelling other countries to halt the purchase of Iranian oil.

The latest sanctions come as Iran’s foreign minister met indirectly with senior US envoys in Oman on Friday to discuss Tehran’s nuclear programme, describing the talks as taking place in a “positive atmosphere.”

The discussions followed a period of heightened tensions, during which Iran’s clerical leadership violently suppressed some of the largest protests since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Trump has previously threatened the use of force against Iran and increased US military presence near the country’s shores.