“There is a bill prepared in the National Security and Foreign Policy committee of Parliament that stresses the blocking of oil tanker traffic carrying oil to countries that have sanctioned Iran.”-Ibrahim Agha-Mohammadi,  Member of Iranian Parliament

02 July 2012, in a move that seems counter to the European Union (EU) oil sanctions that went into effect on 01 July 2012, Iranian lawmakers say they will block oil shipments to Europe by closing the Strait of Hormuz.

It’s also meant to show that Iran does not need European countries for its oil business.  As of Sunday, 100 of the 290 members of Iran’s parliament have signed the bill.

Also today, Iran created a $14 billion USD fund to expand its oil industry: “The $14 billion fund can create a remarkable momentum in the oil industry and indicates that despite sanctions there is no problem in the trend of the country’s development and production in the oil sector.”-Mohammad Reza Farzin, Managing-Director of Iran’s National Development Fund

Also today, South Korean news media reported that South Korean oil refiners and Iranian oil companies have reached an agreement that would allow South Korea (a U.S. ally/puppet) to resume Iranian oil shipments without violating the European sanctions: “Korean oil refiners and the Iranian side have been in consultations over the matter of using Iranian flagged oil tankers to resume oil shipments.”-unnamed South Korean official

For insurance reasons South Korea will use Iranian tanker ships, which turns out to also be a loop hole in the European oil sanctions!

Also today, Iran’s Oil Ministry announced that despite the 01 July 2012 European oil sanctions, Iranian exports of refined gasoline for European customers will actually increase: “The daily production of euro4 gasoline will reach 24 million liters [6.3 million U.S. gallons] by the end of the current [Iranian] year.”-Alireza Zeiqami, Iran’s Deputy Oil Minister

But who’s the biggest buyer of refined Iranian fuels?  Why the U.S. occupied country of Afghanistan!  In 2011, Afghanistan bought $51.6 million USD worth of Iranian fuels.

On 01 July 2012, corrupt British bank Barclays revealed that a certain type of Iranian oil will escape any attempt at sanctions. It’s called “bunkers” (aka vital blending components).  Bunkers are blended fuels for ships, and the international shipping fleets will need at least $145 billion USD this year, according to Bloomberg.  But here’s the rub for U.S. and EU sanctions: “This is a problem we didn’t foresee. We don’t know how much Iranian oil is already blended in.”-Peter Sand, Baltic and International Maritime Council, which represents 65% of ship owners

Reports also show that Iran really does not need the U.S. or EU as customers, demands from Asia and Africa are growing rapidly. Currently Iran is supplying 100% of Sri Lanka’s petroleum needs, 51% of Turkey’s, 25% of South Africa’s, 11% of India’s and China’s, and 10% of Japan’s and South Korea’s demands.

Oh, by the way, did you know that at the end of June the U.S. government exempted China from the latest sanctions, for the next 180 days?

Full o’Crap western news media continue to claim U.S. led sanctions have hurt Iran’s economy.  The U.S. has imposed sanctions for decades, yet Iran has become one of the richest countries in the region, and not just because of oil!

Iran’s mining industry, excluding petroleum, is now the seventh largest in the world: “We have now achieved self-sufficiency in mining and heavy industries by over 70% in the last four years, while we were once totally dependent (on foreign countries) in these sectors.”-Hassan Polark, Iran’s Industry, Mines and Trade

“The richest gold mines in Venezuela, for instance, have been discovered by the young Iranian engineers.”-Hamid Safdel, Iran’s Industry, Mines and Trade

Iran and Iraq have increased trade to close to $10 million USD so far this year, and they plan to do more: “The volume of the trade exchanges between Iran and Iraq amounts to $9.7 billion which shows an 8% growth compared with the last year.”-Mostafa Mohammad Najjar, Iran’s Interior Minister

Also: “We are also ready to build new power plants in order to increase the capacity of power exports to Iraq. The [Karkheh-al-Emara] power line has increased the capacity of Iran’s electricity exports to Iraq to 1,200 megawatts [daily].”-Majid Namjou, Iran’s Minister of Energy

I could go on and on, like Iranian construction contractors building apartments in the South American country of Venezuela.  Belorussian tractor companies making joint production deals with Iranian tractor companies. Iranian automobile manufacturers reporting increased production, for yet another year in a row.

And to prove Iran is making money despite U.S. and EU sanctions, on 02 July 2012, Iranian officials announced they were able to buy two million metric tons of wheat: “The government has so far been able to import two million tons of wheat into the country despite financial restrictions and sanctions. Such a (large) volume of imported wheat is for supplying the country’s strategic reserves.”-unnamed Iranian official

Iran buys wheat from several sources.  Pakistan is a top source, but India is reportedly offering to beat Pakistan’s prices to win orders from Iran.  India is now the second largest producer of wheat in the world.

Iran also buys wheat from Kazakhstan.  Iranian reports say imports of Kazak wheat could increase by 5 million metric tons next year!