Biden unlikely to cut Iran's oil lifeline after Israel attack
By Arshad Mohammed, Timothy Gardner and Michael Martina
April 16, 20248:27 AM CDTUpdated 2 hours ago
WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - Iran's unprecedented missile and drone strike on Israel is unlikely to prompt dramatic sanctions action on Iran's oil exports from the Biden administration due to worries about boosting oil prices and angering top buyer China, said analysts.
Shortly after Tehran launched its weekend attack - retaliation for Israel's suspected April 1 strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus - House Republican leaders accused President Joe Biden of failing to enforce existing measures and said they would take up this week a series of bills to sharpen sanctions on Iran.
Speaking to Fox News on Sunday, Representative Steve Scalise the No. 2 House Republican, said the administration had made it easier for Iran to sell its oil, generating revenues that were being used to "go fund terrorist activity."
The political pressure to punish Iran creates a thorny problem for the administration: how to deter such attacks in future without escalating regional tensions, raising oil prices or antagonizing China, the biggest buyer of Iranian oil.
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https://www.reuters.com/world/biden-unlikely-cut-irans-oil-lifeline-after-israel-attack-2024-04-16/
