The US has declined to renew a sanctions waiver to allow Iraq to purchase Iranian electricity, officials told Al Arabiya English Saturday night.
“President Trump has been clear that the Iranian regime must cease its ambitions for a nuclear weapon or face Maximum Pressure. We hope the regime will put the interests of its people and the region ahead of its destabilizing policies,” National Security Council Spokesman James Hewitt told Al Arabiya English.
This decision is in line with National Security Presidential Memorandum 2, Hewitt said, adding that it ensures the US policy of not allowing Iran any degree of economic or financial relief.
“The (US) President’s maximum pressure campaign is designed to end Iran’s nuclear threat, curtail its ballistic missile program, and stop it from supporting terrorist groups,” he said.
Hewitt called Iran an “unreliable energy supplier,” unable to meet its own domestic demand and urged the Iraq to welcome its prime minister’s commitment to achieve energy independence by eliminating its dependence on Iranian sources.
“Iraq’s energy transition provides opportunities for US companies, which are world-leading experts in increasing the productivity of power plants, improving electricity grids, and developing electricity interconnections with reliable partners,” he said.
