Pompeo: The Ultimate Goal of Sanctions is for the People of Iran to Have a Better Life

Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, stated on Thursday, January 3, that the U.S. government continuously evaluates sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran to ensure they align with Washington's policies. He emphasized that the ultimate goal of these sanctions is for the people of Iran to have a better life compared to living under this authoritarian regime. In an exclusive interview with Newsmax TV, Pompeo responded to a question regarding the duration of the oil sanctions exemptions against Iran, stating that the exemptions last for six months. Following the announcement of the U.S. withdrawal from the six-power agreement with Iran, known as the JCPOA, in May of this year, Donald Trump, the President of the United States, who has repeatedly referred to this agreement as the 'worst' deal in U.S. history, announced the reinstatement of all sanctions against Iran, including oil sanctions. However, the U.S. granted exemptions from oil sanctions to China, India, Japan, South Korea, Turkey, Italy, Greece, and Taiwan for six months. Pompeo also clarified in this interview: 'We are continuously evaluating the sanctions (against Iran) to ensure they align with our policies.' He added: 'We still want to ensure that enough crude oil is supplied in the (global) market, but at the same time, we want to ensure that the requirements and regulations in this regard are also enforced. The sanctions have a final goal, which is to create conditions so that the people of Iran can have a better life than under this authoritarian regime.' In this context, Donald Trump stated in November that to prevent an increase in oil prices in the global market due to the reinstatement of sanctions against Iran, Washington is looking to implement the oil sanctions against Tehran gradually. The U.S. President added: 'We have imposed the toughest sanctions ever, but regarding oil, we want to move a bit slower because we do not want global oil prices to rise.' With the implementation of U.S. oil sanctions against Iran, Iran's oil exports have decreased. Iran's oil exports have dropped from 2.5 million barrels last year to about 1.1 to 1.2 million barrels currently. Regarding the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria, Pompeo said that the President has ordered our forces to leave Syria, but at the same time, he made it clear that we must continue to fight in the region. We must ensure that the fight against ISIS continues, necessary actions for stability in the Middle East are taken, and the confrontation with Iran continues. However, the Secretary of State refrained from providing a timeline for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria. Pompeo stated, 'We do not want our enemies to know the exact timing of this action.' He also pointed out that the U.S. wants to ensure that with the withdrawal of its forces from Syria, Turkish forces do not massacre the Kurds and that the rights of ethnic and religious minorities are preserved. Early last month, Trump unexpectedly announced on his Twitter page that 2,000 U.S. troops would be leaving Syria. The U.S. President clarified that the Islamic State (ISIS) has been defeated and that U.S. forces will 'gradually' return to the United States to be with their families. The announcement of the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria, which coincided with the critical resignation of Defense Secretary James Mattis, drew criticism from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers. Some of these American lawmakers expressed concern about the power vacuum in Syria following the withdrawal of U.S. forces and the potential expansion of Iranian influence.