The curbs, which cover the shipping, financial and energy sectors, came into force on Monday.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Monday said Tehran will “proudly bypass” sanctions re-imposed by United States on the isolated nation, AFP reported. The Iranian president referred to US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose restrictions as “illegal and unjust”.
Meanwhile, Trump said Iran was already grappling with the curbs. “We will see what happens with Iran, but they are not doing very well, I can tell you,” BBC quoted him as saying.
On Friday, United States Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Stephen Mnuchin had announced a resumption of sanctions that were imposed on Iran prior to the signing of the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal, AP reported. The curbs, which cover the shipping, financial and energy sectors, came into force on Monday.
The US’ curbs are aimed at “fundamentally altering the behaviour of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, Pompeo had said. The US has placed 12 demands that Tehran must meet to get the sanctions lifted, including ending support for terrorism and ending military engagement in Syria.
Rouhani made the statement against “bullying power” United States during a meeting with economists that was broadcast on state television. “America wanted to cut to zero Iran’s oil sales, but we will continue to sell our oil to break sanctions,” Rouhani said. “We are in a situation of economic war, confronting a bullying power. I don’t think that in the history of America, someone has entered the White House who is so against law and international conventions.”
Meanwhile, thousands of Iranians staged a protest against the United States and chanted “death to America” on Sunday.
Iran’s military said it will conduct air defence drills on Monday and Tuesday to showcase its capability, BBC quoted Tehran’s armed forces as saying.
