WEBVTT

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The US is threatening Iran with economic D-Day
, with sanctions targeting Tehran's main trading

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partners. So who are they? China is the
biggest buyer of Iranian oil, an estimated

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1.38 million barrels per day in 2025. In April
, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on a

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Chinese independent refinery for buying
billions of dollars' worth of Iranian oil. It

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also warned Chinese banks of secondary
sanctions. If they facilitated the trade of

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Iranian oil. But over the past decade, Beijing
has created a ring-fenced system of refiners.

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They process mainly Iranian oil and do not
have much US exposure. China has said it firmly

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opposes illegal unilateral sanctions. The UAE
has long been one of Iran's economic

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lifelines and was among Tehran's largest
trading partners before the war. It provided

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30% of Iran's imports worth an overall $21
billion in 2024, according to the World Trade

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Organization's latest figures, as well as 13%
of exports. But the UAE recently suspended all

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financial and economic transactions with Iran
until further notice. It cited a military

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escalation by Tehran with a missile threat.
Turkey, which gets 13% of its

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gas from Iran, has expressed no willingness to
change its significant economic ties with

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Tehran. Iraq pays Iran around $4 to $5 billion
a year for natural gas. Two

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Iraqi energy officials said any new US
sanctions could create significant challenges

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for Baghdad in maintaining payments for
Iranian energy. And India's trade with Iran

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once stood at $17 billion. It was cut by more
than 2/3 in 2020 when the US pressed on with

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sanctions against Tehran and has fallen
further ever since.