Nournews: Trump’s re-election as the president of the United States has increased the possibility of the return of the maximum pressure policy against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The policy, which began during Trump’s previous presidency and coincided with the US’s illegal withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was accompanied by the widest economic sanctions against Iran.
Preventing the sale of oil and petrochemical products by Iran and preventing the transfer of currencies gained from Iran’s foreign trade were among the main goals of Trump in pursuing the maximum pressure policy. Although Democrats criticized this policy during Trump’s era, with Joe Biden’s rise, they followed a similar path and refrained from removing sanctions.
From claim to action: Continuation of sanctions in the Biden administration
Although Democrats during Trump’s presidency were opposed to his policies, the Biden administration showed that it actually follows the same path with different methods. Just like Trump’s, the Biden administration tried to target active networks in the field of oil transfer by approving new laws and identifying the mechanisms of Iran’s oil transfer, restricting the flow of Iran’s oil exports and the transfer of values gained from foreign trade.
Despite months of direct negotiations between Iran and Europe and indirect negotiations between Iran and the US, the diplomatic path could not lead to lifting the unilateral, illegal sanctions of the US against Iran due to Washington’s persistence on maintaining the maximum pressure policy for gaining concessions. The Biden administration continued and even expanded its targeted policy of sanctions, with disregard to Iran’s rights that had been recognized within the framework of the JCPOA.
Iran’s challenges against sanction pressures
One of the main goals of the United States’ maximum pressure policy is disrupting Iran’s process of selling oil and preventing the country’s access to the currency from it. Among the United States’ actions in this regard, one can refer to identifying and sanctioning the fleet of oil and petrochemical transfer that Western media call the “Shadow Fleet.”
The network, which uses multiple tankers and innovative methods for oil transfer, is one of the main tools of Iran for neutralizing sanctions in the oil and petrochemical sale sector. The network has managed to transfer currency from Iran’s foreign trade as well as sustain Iran’s oil export flow over the past years, through smart methods and collaboration with allied countries, preventing serious economic problems caused by inhuman sanctions. However, the United States has tried to identify and disrupt this mechanism and related people by using intelligence instruments and approving new laws.
Since October 2024, the United States, by sanctioning 53 tankers and expanding the list of people and companies related to Iran’s oil exports, has increased its pressure on this sector. This action has been accompanied by approving laws such as the “SHIP ACT” and placing Iran’s oil and petrochemical sector under Executive Order 13902, which has provided the possibility for faster and wider sanctions.
Media serving sanctions
Over the past six months, the United States and its allied media network, while intensifying their intelligence actions for identifying oil and petrochemical products of Iran, have launched a wave of media campaigns with false and biased news. These actions are aimed at supporting anti-Iranian goals and legitimizing illegal and unilateral US sanctions against Iran.
These attempts, in addition to causing fear among countries and customers of Iran’s oil and petrochemical products, are seeking to induce distrust among domestic public opinion regarding the effective actions done to neutralize sanctions. Washington, through media campaigning, is trying to push Iran to accept the imposed demands of the West as the only solution to lift sanctions.
Role of oil sale sustainability in enhancing Iran’s bargaining power
Although the US’s pressures have been aimed at reducing Iran’s oil revenues, the sustainability of the oil export flow and earning currency resources from it will not only reduce the effects of sanctions by strengthening currency resources from oil sales, but also increase Iran’s bargaining power in international negotiations. The more Iran manages to overcome obstacles created by sanctions successfully and stabilize the paths of oil transfer, its position against political and economic pressures will become firmer.
Such capability will allow Iran to achieve its inalienable rights by relying on domestic abilities and international interactions. Maintaining stability in oil exports and petrochemical products to different countries, enhancing collaboration with economic partners, and relying on initiative against sanctions are among actions that can increase Iran’s power against sanction pressures.
Future perspective: Return of maximum pressure or continuation of resistance?
If Trump returns to power, the possibility of intensified economic pressures and the imposition of maximum political pressures will increase. The US may target all infrastructures of Iran’s oil export, including ports and transport companies, by exploiting new legal frameworks.
But Iran’s experience in resisting such policies and its capabilities in creating initiative mechanisms can lead to the continuation of Iran’s oil trade and an increase in its diplomatic power, in case of domestic coordination, cohesion, and close collaboration of all related centers.
The US’s sanctions, whether during the Trump or Biden administration, are an indication of using economic tools for the realization of political goals. However, Iran has been able to neutralize parts of these effects by smart resistance. In addition to that, countering the media campaigning and maintaining domestic trust are among other vital priorities. The more Iran can resist sanction pressures and sustain the conditions of oil sales and currency transfers, not only will the effects of sanctions decrease, but also Iran’s bargaining power in negotiations for achieving its inalienable rights will increase.
NOURNEWS