The United States is set to impose new restrictions on Iranian oil exports, particularly to China, according to a White House meeting between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Axios reported .
The report said the main goal of the talks was to force Iran to reduce oil exports to China . Citing two US officials, Axios reported that the two leaders agreed to apply “maximum pressure” against Tehran.
China buys more than 80 percent of Iran’s oil exports by sea, an average of about 1.38 million barrels per day last year, according to data from analytics firm Kepler. Washington argues that the sanctions are driven by fears that oil revenues could be used to finance Iran’s nuclear program.
China has opposed unilateral US sanctions and has insisted that trade with Tehran is legitimate. But Washington believes that curbing exports to China could force Iran to change policy or move forward with nuclear talks.