An Islamic Republic diplomat says Iran's extensive exports to East Asia have vanished

The former Iranian ambassador to Germany, Japan, and Brazil states that U.S. sanctions have severely limited Iran's economic interactions with Europe and have nearly brought trade relations with East Asia to a standstill. Ali Majidi stated in an interview with ILNA on Saturday, April 9, that significant Asian countries have ceased cooperation with Iran, saying, "Currently, East Asia is not working with us at all, except for China and perhaps a few countries to which we have very limited exports." According to this Islamic Republic diplomat, developed countries such as Japan, South Korea, and recently India, which is the fifth-largest economy in the world, have minimized their trade relations with Iran. Majidi also mentioned recent meetings with members of the Chamber of Commerce, specifically regarding Japan, stating that economic and even political interactions with this country have also been "suspended." He added that in the past, if Iran's oil exports were divided between Europe and East Asia, about three-quarters of these exports would go to East Asia: "But now that has also disappeared." Bloomberg reported that about 17 million barrels of Iranian crude oil are stranded near Malaysia without buyers. Meanwhile, Iran's limited oil exports to China, circumventing sanctions through a shadow fleet, have also become much more restricted due to the return of the "maximum pressure" campaign by Donald Trump's administration against the Islamic Republic. On Thursday, Bloomberg reported that more than 10 tankers carrying 17 million barrels of Iranian crude oil are stranded near the shores of Malaysia, with some of these tankers having been anchored for over a month without buyers. Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, previously referred to U.S. sanctions against Iran, primarily imposed due to the Islamic Republic's nuclear program, as an "opportunity." However, the former head of the Central Bank stated on April 5 in an interview with Khabar Online that the cost of sanctions on Iran's foreign trade is at least $50 billion. According to Mohammad Hossein Adeli, in the year 1402 (2023), the volume of Iran's foreign trade was about $150 billion, and considering a "30% increase in costs due to sanctions," an additional $50 billion burden has been imposed on the country. Adeli added, "If we calculate this figure with the dollar at 93,000 tomans in the free market, the cost of sanctions is equivalent to the annual budget of the government. This means that each Iranian, on average, suffers an annual loss of about 53 million tomans, and a four-person family loses about 18 million tomans monthly." The extensive U.S. sanctions against Iran were reimposed after Donald Trump's administration withdrew from the JCPOA in May 2018. These sanctions affected not only the energy sector but also the banking system, shipping, and even the trade of essential goods. Promises from Joe Biden's administration to return to the JCPOA have not materialized, and negotiations to revive the JCPOA, which began in Vienna in 2021, have effectively reached a deadlock despite several rounds of talks. Currently, direct negotiations between Tehran and Washington have stalled, and the leader of the Islamic Republic has repeatedly deemed negotiations with the U.S. as "futile" or "harmful." However, following repeated statements from Donald Trump and a letter containing "opportunity and threat" recently sent to Ali Khamenei, Islamic Republic officials say they are "ready for indirect negotiations with the U.S."