Considering the deceptive practices of the Central Bank of Iran and its other banks, which has posed high risk to the international financial system, President Obama has ordered new economic sanctions to be placed on Iran and its banks.
This new amendment including the sanctions on Iran’s Central Bank was added to the law that was signed into effect in December 2011, and attributed this additional amendment to the deficiencies of Iran’s anti-money laundering regime and transactions hidden by these banks.
Both the European Union and the United States have been imposing harsh sanctions on Iran’s oil sector, thanks to international concerns about the nuclear program that is currently being developed and which the world, and in particular Israel, considers to be a real threat.
It is also very clear that the Obama administration is holding Iran accountable for its nuclear program that can cause war on a larger scale. Even though efforts are being made to resolve this nuclear threat diplomatically, there is no certainty that Israel will consult its allies before striking Iran.
And since these sanctions will put pressure on Iran’s economy, the United States hopes to discourage the nuclear ambitions that Iran has, and which could effectively destabilize affairs in the Middle East as well.
But there is a downside to such actions as well: not only will this increase the price of oil but in turn, would allow Iran to benefit from further profits from its oil exports. This, for all practical purposes, would defeat the very purpose of the bill passed by Obama.