Pakistan, Iran ignore US pressure on pipeline
Source: Agencies |
March 12, 2013, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE leaders of Pakistan and Iran yesterday pushed ahead with a pipeline to bring natural gas from Iran despite American opposition, with the Iranian president saying the West has no right to block the project.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spoke during a ceremony alongside his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari in Iran near the Pakistani border intended to mark the beginning of construction of the Pakistani side of the pipeline.
The pipeline is designed to help Pakistan overcome its energy needs when the country is facing increased blackouts and energy shortages.
But there are serious doubts about how Pakistan could finance the US$1.5 billion needed to construct the pipeline and whether it could go through with the project without facing US sanctions, which Washington has put in place to pressure Iran over its nuclear program.
"Today is a historic day. The gas pipeline project is the beginning of a great work," said Ahmadinejad, speaking to dignitaries from both countries. "The Westerners have no right to make any obstacles in the way of the project."
Iran's deputy oil minister, Javad Owji, told Iranian state television that Tehran already built 900 kilometers of the pipeline, with about 320 kilometers remaining to be built inside Iran. The Pakistan segment of the pipeline is expected to be about 780 kilometers.
Owji said Iranian contractors will be involved in building the Pakistani portion of the pipeline. Gas is supposed to start flowing in by the end of 2014, although few see that deadline as realistic considering the delays so far in the project.
The US has repeatedly raised questions about the project.
"If this deal is finalized for a proposed Iran-Pakistan pipeline, it would raise serious concerns under our Iran Sanctions Act. We've made that absolutely clear to our Pakistani counterparts," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said last week.
Under American regulations, a wide-ranging list of business-related activities with Iran can trigger American sanctions. Sales of technology or equipment that allow Iran to develop its energy sector are barred, as are most transactions involving gasoline or other fuels. Business dealings with Iranian financial institutions is also banned.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spoke during a ceremony alongside his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari in Iran near the Pakistani border intended to mark the beginning of construction of the Pakistani side of the pipeline.
The pipeline is designed to help Pakistan overcome its energy needs when the country is facing increased blackouts and energy shortages.
But there are serious doubts about how Pakistan could finance the US$1.5 billion needed to construct the pipeline and whether it could go through with the project without facing US sanctions, which Washington has put in place to pressure Iran over its nuclear program.
"Today is a historic day. The gas pipeline project is the beginning of a great work," said Ahmadinejad, speaking to dignitaries from both countries. "The Westerners have no right to make any obstacles in the way of the project."
Iran's deputy oil minister, Javad Owji, told Iranian state television that Tehran already built 900 kilometers of the pipeline, with about 320 kilometers remaining to be built inside Iran. The Pakistan segment of the pipeline is expected to be about 780 kilometers.
Owji said Iranian contractors will be involved in building the Pakistani portion of the pipeline. Gas is supposed to start flowing in by the end of 2014, although few see that deadline as realistic considering the delays so far in the project.
The US has repeatedly raised questions about the project.
"If this deal is finalized for a proposed Iran-Pakistan pipeline, it would raise serious concerns under our Iran Sanctions Act. We've made that absolutely clear to our Pakistani counterparts," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said last week.
Under American regulations, a wide-ranging list of business-related activities with Iran can trigger American sanctions. Sales of technology or equipment that allow Iran to develop its energy sector are barred, as are most transactions involving gasoline or other fuels. Business dealings with Iranian financial institutions is also banned.
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