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Title: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: dead0man on January 21, 2012, 07:30:25 AM link (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9025789/China-begins-to-turn-against-Iran.html)
Quote After a visit to the Gulf in which he met the leaders of the states most threatened by Iran's aggressive foreign policy, Wen Jiabao, the Chinese premier, issued Beijing's clearest condemnation yet . "China adamantly opposes Iran developing and possessing nuclear weapons," he said. China appears to have sent a message to Iran that it could not rely on Beijing's unstinting support by reducing its imports of oil at a time when the US and Europe are promoting an embargo on the country. The Washington Post reported that China trimmed its oil imports from Iran in January from a daily average of around 550,000 barrels to 285,000 barrels a day. Chinese foreign policy experts said the statement demonstrated that Beijing would not allow its international position to end up beholden to Iran. <snip> Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: Landslide Lyndon on January 21, 2012, 10:46:43 AM Diplomacy is for wimps like Obama. Bring back W. and let's bomb, bomb, bomb Iran.
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: Stranger in a strange land on January 21, 2012, 03:46:59 PM China, a large importer of oil, is probably tired of Iran's antics and their upward pressure on oil prices.
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자) on January 21, 2012, 08:10:46 PM More like China doesn't want to risk its oil supply coming from a crazy country. The last thing China needs is an oil shock, so reducing its consumption of Iranian oil makes sense.
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: RodPresident on January 21, 2012, 11:15:28 PM While this, Russia's czar Putin wants expensive oil to sell.
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran (and now Russia?) Post by: dead0man on March 03, 2012, 02:10:47 PM link (http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/02/russia-iran-banks-idUSL5E8E217B20120302)
Quote A state-controlled Russian bank is closing down the accounts of Iranian embassy staff in Moscow in a step criticised by Ambassador Seyed Mahmoud-Reza Sajjadi as surrendering to U.S.-led financial sanctions against Tehran. Sajjadi said on Friday that the shutdown had been ordered at short notice by VTB24, the retail banking arm of Russia's second-largest bank VTB, and that his own credit card had been blocked. The closure of the embassy staff's personal accounts, confirmed by VTB24, comes as Washington steps up efforts to block Iran's ability to conduct financial transactions and force it to the negotiating table over its nuclear programme. <snip> Russia, already at loggerheads with the West over the uprising in Syria, has repeatedly warned against a possible military strike by Israeli or Western forces to knock out Iran's uranium enrichment efforts. Moscow has supported Iran's civilian nuclear programme by building the Bushehr atomic power plant, which started operations last year after years of delays. In some cases, Iranian officials suggested delays were deliberate and that Russia was using the project as a lever in diplomacy. Iran's state trading corporation, meanwhile, has emerged as a significant buyer of Russian grain on international markets to meet the country's food needs, purchasing 500,000 tonnes of Russian wheat last week. Iran has also bought U.S. wheat. Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: 2952-0-0 on March 03, 2012, 04:30:11 PM Isn't in Putin's interest for a controllable amount of tension to exist in the Middle East, to keep oil prices up?
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: Silent Hunter on March 03, 2012, 04:37:35 PM Isn't in Putin's interest for a controllable amount of tension to exist in the Middle East, to keep oil prices up? Stability is probably better in the long term - Russians buy oil too. Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: dead0man on March 03, 2012, 04:49:04 PM ....and they sell a lot of weapons.
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: Vosem on March 03, 2012, 10:11:39 PM If an invasion of Iran really is in the cards, Russia might want to ally herself to the US -- strike from the north, perhaps carve out a sphere of influence.
Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: 2952-0-0 on March 03, 2012, 11:50:25 PM If an invasion of Iran really is in the cards, Russia might want to ally herself to the US -- strike from the north, perhaps carve out a sphere of influence. A land invasion of Iran would be far, far more stupid and difficult than Iraq. In fact, any such attempt will, and *will* lead to the sitting POTUS' impeachment even from his own party. Title: Re: China begins to turn against Iran Post by: Beet on March 05, 2012, 11:39:14 PM They've shifted more explicitly anti-Iran today.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/06/china-iran-nuclear-idUSL4E8E60YO20120306 (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Tuesday repeated a warning that Beijing is opposed to Iran possessing nuclear weapons, but defended Tehran's right to peaceful nuclear power. Yang, speaking at a news conference held as part of China's annual parliamentary session, reiterated that China opposed unilateral sanctions on Iran, against a backdrop of ratcheting international tensions over Tehran's nuclear activities. Yang's comments come a day after the United Nations' nuclear watchdog's chief said he has "serious concerns" about possible military dimensions to Tehran's atomic activities, and after U.S. President Barack Obama left open the possibility of military action if Iran builds a nuclear weapon. Although Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao warned Tehran in January against any effort to acquire nuclear weapons, Beijing has generally been reticent about publicly warning Iran or even firmly suggesting that Tehran might want to develop the means to develop nuclear weapons. |