US blockade chokes Iran’s oil revenue, Tehran may intensify efforts to break restrictions
The freezing of around $350 million in Iranian cryptocurrency and Washington’s claim that the blockade has prevented at least $25 billion in Iranian oil exports highlight the growing strain on Tehran’s finances.
Maleki said, however, that the loss of oil revenue posed the greater challenge for Iran. “The economic clock of the Islamic Republic has basically stopped,” Maleki said, arguing that Tehran no longer had access to the oil revenue it previously relied on to finance imports. Some goods currently entering Iran were paid for earlier, while other imports continue to arrive through land routes, Maleki said.
The US naval blockade on Iranian ports has weakened Tehran’s ability to generate revenue from oil exports, potentially pushing Iran to intensify efforts to break the blockade and challenge Washington’s restrictions. However, those floating reserves were depleted by mid-October, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing analysts at commodity-data firm Kpler.