Iran Bank Chief Calls Sanctions Akin to 'War'

(AP) Iran bank chief calls sanctions akin to `war’
By NASSER KARIMI
Associated Press
TEHRAN, Iran
Iran’s central bank chief says tightening of Western sanctions is equal to a “military war” that requires new tactics to overcome economic pressures on Tehran.

The official IRNA news agency quotes Mahmoud Bahmani as saying that sanctions are “no less than a military war” and that Iran must respond with its own economic countermeasures.

Tuesday’s report gave no details, but says a special headquarters has been set up to fight back against the sanctions that have targeted Iran’s vital oil exports and its access to international banking systems.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the sanctions “political warfare.”

The West and its allies worry Iran could eventually produce nuclear weapons. Iran says it only seeks reactors for energy and medical applications.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday slammed Western sanctions on Iran’s oil sector as a “ridiculous” move that seeks to deprive the world of energy resources at a time when demand is swelling.

Iran’s leaders have repeatedly insisted the country can withstand the international sanctions imposed in efforts to curb Tehran’s nuclear program. But the rash of defensive comments by Ahmadinejad and others _ including warnings against local media reports on the sanctions fallout _ suggest deepening worries about a sustained drop in vital oil revenue.

The European Union _ which once accounted for around 18 percent of Iran’s oil exports _ stopped all contracts with Tehran on July 1. Meanwhile, the U.S. is pressuring Iran’s key Asian oil customers such as India and South Korea to look to the Gulf and other suppliers.

Iran relies on oil for some 80 percent of its foreign revenue.

Ahmadinejad’s remarks came after Congress pressed ahead late Monday with a new package of sanctions on Iran, expanding financial penalties and targeting Tehran’s energy and shipping sectors in the hope that economic pressure will undercuts the country’s suspected nuclear weapons program. Iran denies it seeks atomic weapons

Also Monday, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta acknowledged that increasingly stiff international sanctions have yet to compel Iran to give up its nuclear ambitions. But he argued that more pressure eventually would lead Iran to “do what’s right.”

In Tehran, Iran’s oil minister said there is no need for an additional OPEC meeting to discuss oil prices. A report by the semiofficial Mehr news agency quoted Rostam Ghasemi as saying the current price does not merit an extraordinary meeting of the oil-exporting cartel.

Ghasemi said oil prices $100 per barrel seem “fair.” Benchmark crude was below $89 a barrel Tuesday in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.