Here’s a rundown of all the news you need to start your Wednesday, including 11 European countries and Canada announcing restrictions on trade with illegal Israeli settlements, US forces destroying Iranian tankers after IRGC attacks on a US Navy warship, and the US sanctioning several Iran-linked targets under the “Economic D-Day” campaign.
Eleven European countries plus Canada announced plans Tuesday to introduce national restrictions on trade in goods with Israeli settlements that are illegal under international law, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot announced.
“Today, France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Poland, Portugal and Sweden confirm their intention to impose national restrictions on trade in goods with settlements that are illegal under international law and/or to support European restrictions to this effect,” said a joint declaration issued by Barrot.
The statement reaffirmed that the 12 countries are “seriously considering” adopting such restrictions or other measures in accordance with their national procedures.
“In this regard, France, the United Kingdom and Canada welcome the significant measures already taken by Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium, and will propose national measures to prohibit trade in goods originating from settlements,” it added.
The declaration decried actions taken by the Israeli government in the occupied West Bank that undermine the possibility of a two-state solution.
US forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the past two days, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said Tuesday.
“The U.S. warship successfully evaded the attempted Iranian attacks and continued to patrol regional waters. No American personnel were harmed,” it said in a statement.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier Tuesday that Iran would continue to lose tankers for every attempt it makes to strike US naval vessels.
“Iran continues to try to hit US naval ships, and for every time they do that or try to do that, they’re going to lose tankers. And I think you’ll see that again today,” Rubio told reporters during his visit to Colombia.
The US Treasury Department announced Tuesday that it imposed sanctions on 36 targets linked to Iran’s aviation sector, including 27 airlines, accusing the sector of facilitating the movement of weapons, personnel and illicit cargo.
The action, carried out under the Treasury’s “Operation Economic Outcast,” includes sanctions against Iran’s remaining active airlines, as well as companies and intermediaries accused of helping Tehran acquire US-origin aircraft and aviation technology.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the measures were intended to cut financial lifelines supporting the government and warned companies doing business with sanctioned Iranian airlines that they could face exclusion from the global financial system.
Oil prices rose more than 2% Tuesday, with Brent crude nearing $100 a barrel as escalating tensions between the US and Iran heightened concerns over potential supply disruptions in the Middle East.
The international benchmark climbed above $99 a barrel as of 2020GMT.
Prices gained momentum after the US and Iran exchanged strikes over the weekend, further escalating the conflict and raising fears that oil production and shipments from the region could be disrupted.
European natural gas prices climbed to their highest in more than three and a half years Tuesday as escalating tensions between the US and Iran continued to disrupt liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies from the Gulf.
The benchmark European gas contract rose 4.5% to €76.7 ($89.1) per megawatt-hour as of 1720GMT.
The escalation highlighted the difficulty of reaching a resolution that could restore normal shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for global oil and LNG supplies.
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