MADRID, July 2, 2008
Iranian Oil Minister Warns Against Attack
Tehran Would "React Fiercely" To A Strike From The U.S. Or Israel
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Iran's oil minister Gholam Hossein Nozari, attends a news conference at the World Petroleum Congress in Madrid. Nozari has warned that any attack on his country by the United States or Israel would provoke an unimaginably fierce response. (AP)
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Timeline The U.S. And Iran Key events in once friendly, now contentious relationship between Washington and Tehran.
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Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari, however, said Tehran would not cut oil deliveries and would continue supplying the market even if struck by Israel or the United States.
Tehran "is not going to be quiet," if attacked, Nozari told reporters. It's "going to react fiercely, and nobody can imagine what would be the reaction of Iran," he added.
Nozari spoke outside the 19th World Petroleum Congress after a presentation on Iran's oil and gas industry to a packed audience, including representatives of European and U.S. energy companies.
Tehran is under U.N., U.S. and European sanctions because it has defied U.N. Security Council demands to suspend its uranium enrichment program. But with oil supplies tight and prices at unprecedented levels, the energy industry remains tempted by the possibilities of investing in Iran, OPEC's second largest oil producer and No. 2 in terms of the world's natural gas reserves.
President Bush has repeatedly said that a military strike on Tehran is possible as a last-resort if Iran continues to pursues uranium enrichment and fails to heed other Security Council demands. Israel too has warned that it is ready to hit the Islamic Republic's nuclear installations.
“While downplaying the feasibility and need for a military confrontation, Iran’s Foreign Minister said that Iran will respond soon to an offer by the West to negotiate a resolution to its nuclear program and that there was a new atmosphere in the talks,” said CBS Foreign Affairs Analyst Pamela Falk from the U.N. Wednesday, “but Mottaki made a point to say that if attacked, Iran will defend its country and its national interest.”
“Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki conveyed a conciliatory tone at the U.N. today,” Falk added, “clearly distancing himself from the saber rattling of the past week regarding a military attack and asserting that Iran was not sponsoring terror in the Middle East - although he took the time to take a swipe at the U.S. and Israel to say that both were too tied up in other areas of the world to begin a new confrontation.”
ABC News quoted an unnamed senior Pentagon official warning of an "increasing likelihood" that Israel will strike Iran's nuclear facilities before the end of the year. Such an attack could prompt Iran to retaliate, potentially disrupting oil shipments from the strategically vital Persian Gulf.
Nozari said such any attack would send oil prices further into uncharted territory.
"We don't think the wise people in the world even think about any action like that," he said. "Can you imagine ... what would be the result in the oil market?"
Oil prices hit a record high above $143 this week.
But Nozari indicated Iran would not withhold its crude from the market even if attacked, although other officials have indicated otherwise.
"Iran has always been a reliable source of supply to the market, and Iran remains a (reliable) source of supply," he said.
He dismissed suggestions that the standoff over Iran's nuclear program has diminished Iran's oil and gas exports, despite U.S. sanctions that prohibit American companies from doing business with Tehran and growing pressure from Washington on other countries to follow suit.
"We have increased our production in the past two years by 250,000 barrels a day and we have added to the production of our gas," he told the AP.
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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See all 165 CommentsClark stated he viewed a defense department memo that described how the U.S. was going to take out seven countries in five years...."starting with Iraq,then Syria and Lebanon, then Libya,then Somalia and Sudan, and back to Iran."
The Israel Turkey pipeline has been in the works for some time now. In April of 2006 Israel & Turkey made their announcement which included four pipelines which will bypass Syria & Lebanon. The source of the oil is the BTC pipeline from the Caspian Sea Region. Shareholders in the BTC pipeline are: British Petroleum, AzBTC, Chevron, Statoil, TPAO, ENI, Total, Itochu, INPEX, ConocoPhillips & Amerada Hess.
Another very important factor on the war with Lebanon is that Israel will have a strategic role in protecting the pipeline and transportation corridor out of Ceyhan Turkey.
The strategy will weaken Russian oil''s role in central asia and also isolate Iran.
Part of that policy is the The Caspian Sea pipeline which will go through Turkmenistan, Afghanistan,Pakistan, to the gulf of Oman and on to India & Nepal.It will be cheaper to construct if they can go through Iran, but regime change is necessary first. The Caspian sea area holds one third of the world''s oil and south asian oil markets are their target market.
This pipeline was also the reason for the Afghanistan invasion. Cheney''s energy policy is the root of all these middle east wars, a federal court judge sealed all documents associated with it for the administration.
China Dai;ly December 25, 2007
January 24,2008 India announced a plan for a 2,775 km Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline. Union Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said, "Iranian ambassador spoke to me tuesday and they are very keen that the project takes shape as it is in the interest of all three countries ". Times of India
Just Look at Brazil! 100%energy independent. Offshore drilling with ethanol production and Brazil imports ZERO muslim oil!!!!
We can%u2019t let that happen here. Vote Obama 2008 and do your part to keep us dependant on foreign oil!!
Obama Akbar!!
Posted by underdogus10 at 06:00 PM : Jul 02, 2008,,,
The sad thing about your Post is that Osama bin Laden had a goal of oil prices reaching $140.00 a barrel 10 years ago and he actually lived to see it! Are we even trying to capture bin Laden, seriously? bin Laden must be celebrating about now since the price of oil per barrel exceeded his goal! Sad.
The good news- if you are a Exxon-Mobil shareholder- is that this news will only boost profits, and that the Exxon-Mobil executives don''t care how many more are murdered, maimed, and tortured along the way.
Iran''s foreign minister has said his government might consider the American idea of opening a U.S. diplomatic outpost in Tehran -- comments coming amid possible progress in negotiations over Iran''s nuclear program.
But no...no...no...that''s not good enough, they want to force them to take a loan from the IMF so they will have the worthless paper FEDERAL RESERVE NOTES necessary to purchase that same fuel from Russia.
That''s greedy empire stuff folks; make sure that every country is dependent on the currency of the emperor.
And the Persians know this. Why? Because they were once rulers of the Persian empire that was one of the largest in history.
And the Persians know something else too. And that''s the fact that the financial empire of the Anglo-American dual world empire is coming to and because the currency it uses to maintain that empire is losing it''s value at an accelerated rate.
Soon Americans will be drafted for 100 years by John McCain to die for the sake of empire.
Posted by Impeach__W at 03:02 PM : Jul 02, 2008
Was that the same time he looked into Putins eyes and saw his soul?
I''d rather think it was the devil and love at first site!
Good job. Thank you.
Even if you are able to deny these funds for a short period of time, it will undoubtedly help.
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Posted by FeelFree4U at 03:40 PM : Jul 02, 2008
+ report abuse
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make sure you give him your information so when gets audited..he knows which moron to blame. (bottomline, he would spend it all and then when tax time comes..he would just scream ''facist'')
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Posted by Impeach__W at 03:03 PM : Jul 02, 2008
+ report abuse
***********
as clear as the day i heard the liberal masses whinning about the price of oil after they declared that they dont need oil and they are going to fight to get that oil
Re: "I am immediately raising my payroll deductions to the max to keep my tax money from the United States of Imperialism."
"I hope many, many others will do the same. Please spread the word."
Posted by noloyalisti
Good job. Thank you.
Even if you are able to deny these funds for a short period of time, it will undoubtedly help.
I hope many, many others will do the same. Please spread the word.
Posted by elz523 at 01:41 PM : Jul 02, 2008
North Korea.
Bush, he surrendered.
The end.
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Posted by jlagat at 02:22 PM : Jul 02, 2008
As much as I would like to agree. Appeasement gets no agreement in return. In this one case Bush used diplomacy... and it worked. It would have been nice if he would have done the same with Iraq or would do the same with Iran. If he was uninterested in the price of oil, he would. Instead, he and McCain will keep the tensions/oil prices high.
The Israel Turkey pipeline has been in the works for some time now. In April of 2006 Israel & Turkey made their announcement which included four pipelines which will bypass Syria & Lebanon. The source of the oil is the BTC pipeline from the Caspian Sea Region. Shareholders in the BTC pipeline are: British Petroleum, AzBTC, Chevron, Statoil, TPAO, ENI, Total, Itochu, INPEX, ConocoPhillips & Amerada Hess.
Another very important factor on the war with Lebanon is that Israel will have a strategic role in protecting the airspace over the pipeline and transportation corridor out of Ceyhan Turkey.
The strategy will weaken Russian oil''s role in central asia and also isolate Iran.
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See all 165 Comments