国际英语资讯:Spotlight: Turkey seeks ways to continue trade with Iran amid U.S. sanctions_时事

国际英语资讯:Spotlight: Turkey seeks ways to continue trade with Iran amid U.S. sanctions

ANKARA, April 26 -- Ankara and Tehran will seek a bartering system to pass through the U.S. sanctions after Washington announced its decision to end sanction waivers for countries importing Iranian oil, a move could further jeopardize the strained relations between the two NATO allies.

U.S. President Donald Trump has decided not to extend the sanction waivers allowing major importers to continue buying Iran's oil when they expire in early May, White House said Monday.

The U.S. government re-imposed sanctions on Iranian oil exports in November after Washington pulled out of the 2017 Iran nuclear deal.

Turkey was one of those given a six-month waiver from the unilateral sanctions, which will expire on May 2.

Turkey said it would not accept sanctions on oil imports from Iran and warned that the U.S. move to end exemptions "will not serve regional peace and stability ".

"We do not accept unilateral sanctions and impositions on the issue of how we will establish relations with our neighbors," said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Monday.

He slammed comments by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo suggesting Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as alternatives to Iran in oil trade.

"Pushing to buy oil from other countries besides Iran goes too far," Cavusoglu said, stressing the U.S. move "violates the regulations of the World Trade Organization (WTO)."

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif paid a visit to Ankara days before the U.S. move to end exemptions and he had discussions with Turkish officials on alternative mechanisms to continue bilateral trade.