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アメリカが日本企業によるイラン油田開発について圧力
US presses Japan over Iran oil deal
By Guy Dinmore in Washington
Published: June 27 2003 22:01 | Last Updated: June 27 2003 22:01
The US is putting concerted pressure on the Japanese government to pull out of a $2bn (£1.2bn) oil deal with Iran that had been scheduled for signing within the next few days, a US official and sources close to the negotiations said on Friday.
The pressure on Japan to scrap the deal, which has been under negotiation for about two years, is part of a broader US policy to persuade Iran to abandon its suspected nuclear weapons programme and sign an agreement allowing intrusive United Nations inspections of all its nuclear facilities. It is believed to be the first time the US has stepped in directly to block an individual deal with Iran.
Japanese executives of the private but government-backed consortium were said to be standing by in Tehran, waiting for instructions from Tokyo over whether or not to sign the deal with Iran's oil ministry.
One source said Tokyo was trying to resist Washington's intervention and it was possible that signature of the contracts would be postponed until at least September when further developments are expected at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The UN agency has been goaded by the US - so far without success - to press Iran to open up to more rigorous inspections.
Development of part of Azadegan, Iran's largest oil field, was seen in Japan as a vital source of long-term energy supplies after losing the rights to pump crude oil from the Kafji area of Saudi Arabia two years ago. The total recoverable reserves at Azadegan have been estimated at 6bn barrels.
Bijan Zanganeh, Iran's oil minister, said this month that the deal was expected to be signed at the end of June or in early July.
US pressure has come from various quarters. Condoleezza Rice, head of the National Security Council, contacted senior officials in Tokyo, while Colin Powell, secretary of state, raised the issue with Yoriko Kawaguchi, his Japanese counterpart, at a meeting this month in Cambodia. Richard Armitage, Mr Powell's deputy, delivered the same message to the Japanese ambassador in Washington.
The consequences of going ahead with the deal were not spelt out, according to one source close to the negotiations, but Japan was told that its relationship with the US would suffer.
A State Department official confirmed that the Bush administration was pressing Japan, as it has the European Union, not to send the "wrong message" to Iran at such a crucial moment.
The consortium of Japanese companies includes Tomen, Inpex, and Japan Petroleum Exploration.
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