Some U.S. allies not listening when it comes to Iran

U.N. Security Council members Brazil and Turkey have chosen very different paths since they both voted against the latest round of U.N. sanctions on Iran. While Brazil has pledged to abide by the sanctions, despite their disagreement with them, Turkey’s energy minister has vowed to bolster gasoline sales to Tehran. Turkey’s gasoline sales have reportedly ...

AFP/Getty Images
AFP/Getty Images
AFP/Getty Images

U.N. Security Council members Brazil and Turkey have chosen very different paths since they both voted against the latest round of U.N. sanctions on Iran. While Brazil has pledged to abide by the sanctions, despite their disagreement with them, Turkey's energy minister has vowed to bolster gasoline sales to Tehran. Turkey's gasoline sales have reportedly boomed to over five times their daily average, compared to the first half of this year. 

U.N. Security Council members Brazil and Turkey have chosen very different paths since they both voted against the latest round of U.N. sanctions on Iran. While Brazil has pledged to abide by the sanctions, despite their disagreement with them, Turkey’s energy minister has vowed to bolster gasoline sales to Tehran. Turkey’s gasoline sales have reportedly boomed to over five times their daily average, compared to the first half of this year. 

Turkey is not the only U.S. ally looking to increase trade with Iran. In Iraq, a new Iranian trade center has recently opened, and Iran’s ambassador has promised to double trade between the two countries, which he estimated at about $7 billion last year.   

Russia — though few might call it a close U.S. ally — is also getting in on the act. Its state atomic corporation is set to load fuel into Iran’s first nuclear power plant next week.

It doesn’t look like pressing more reset buttons with Turkey, Iraq or Russia is going to help the U.S. attempt to isolate Iran.

Jared Mondschein is an editorial researcher at Foreign Policy.

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