* China, Singapore excluded from waivers
* Sanctions targeting Iran nuclear program may start June 28
* Iran has lost $10 bln in oil sales – U.S. senator
(Adds comments from China embassy, Senator Menendez)
By Timothy Gardner and Susan Cornwell
WASHINGTON, June 11 (Reuters) – The United States extended
exemptions from its tough, new sanctions on Iran’s oil trade to
seven more economies on Mo nday, leaving China the last remaining
major importer exposed to possible penalties at the end of the
month.
In the latest sign Washington is working with other
countries to pressure Iran’s nuclear program, India, South
Korea, Turkey and four more economies will receive waivers from
financial sanctions in return for significantly cutting
purchases of Iranian oil, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
said.
China, which alone buys as much as a fifth of Iran’s crude
exports, and Singapore, where much of the country’s fuel oil is
blended, did not receive such waivers, ramping up pressure on
two important U.S. trade partners in Asia.
The sanctions, which the United States may impose starting
o n J une 28, are Washington’s most ambitious measures yet to
strangle Iran’s nuclear program by cutting funding from its oil
export sales.
The United States and the European Union believe Iran is
trying to build nuclear weapons. Tehran says the program is
strictly for civilian purposes.
Continued…
