EU poised to ban Iranian gas imports, diplomats say October 4, 2012 - 15:23 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The European Union is poised to ban imports of Iranian gas into Europe as part of its efforts to ratchet up pressure on the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program, diplomats said on Thursday, Oct 4. Diplomats from EU member states have started preparing a package of sanctions against Iran with a goal of formally adopting them at a meeting of foreign ministers on Oct 15 in Luxembourg. Late on Wednesday, they reached a preliminary deal to ban gas imports, the first measure to win approval in the package, which also consists of various finance and energy-related proposals, three EU diplomats said. "There is agreement on gas," one of the diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "The big states back it, Germany, Britain, France," another one said, Reuters reported. The moves come as European governments and the United States are searching for new ways to pressure Tehran into scaling back its nuclear work after diplomacy foundered earlier this year. Tehran denies its work has any military intentions. Partner news  Top stories Jorge Rafael Videla, an austere former army commander, led Argentina during the bloodiest days of its Dirty War dictatorship. According to the United Nations, April was Iraq's bloodiest month for almost five years, with 712 people killed. Reports suggest the rebel fighters may have tried to blow up the walls of the prison, which holds some 4,000 inmates. Moscow has condemned other nations for supporting rebel forces and failing to condemn what it describes as terrorist attacks on the Syrian regime.   Partner news |  Latest news Serzh Sargsyan reelected as Armenian Chess Federation president  Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan was reelected to the post of the president of RA Chess Federation for 4 more years.U.S. politicians seek answers about Google Glass Some of the points in the letter were addressed during an interview in San Francisco with Google Glass director Steve Lee.U.S. says Russia’s decision to send missiles to Syria ‘unfortunate’ The sophisticated anti-ship missiles could be used to counter any future foreign military intervention, U.S. officials said.Russia may deliver trucks, helicopters to Peru If the Kamaz and Mi-8 deals go ahead, Russia is prepared to set up centers for servicing the vehicles and aircraft, Goreslavsky said. |
