Der Iran schmuggelt täglich Millionen Liter Treibstoff nach Pakistan
https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-pakistan-smuggling-fuel/33757626.html
Der Iran schmuggelt täglich Millionen Liter Treibstoff nach Pakistan
https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-pakistan-smuggling-fuel/33757626.html
6 Kommentare
Between that and the Caspian sea route, yeah the US needs the strait open more than the Iranians do…
(1/2)
> Iran is smuggling at least 6 million liters of fuel each day to neighboring Pakistan, traders and transporters in the South Asian country told RFE/RL, in violation of US sanctions on the Islamic republic.
> Fuel trafficking is a lifeline for cash-strapped Iran, which is under a US naval blockade that has disrupted its lucrative oil exports. Weeks of US-Israeli bombing has also left the Middle Eastern country’s key infrastructure and industries in tatters.
> Iran has smuggled gasoline and diesel to Pakistan since around 2013, when the United States significantly tightened economic sanctions against Tehran. But there are signs that the volume of fuel that Iran is trafficking has increased since the war began on February 28.
> In response to the US-Israeli bombing campaign, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for global oil supplies, triggering a surge in world fuel prices and upending the global economy.
> Pakistan, a US ally, could come under pressure to clamp down on the smuggling of Iranian oil, experts say. Islamabad has acted as a mediator in negotiations between Washington and Tehran to end the war.
(2/2)
**Smuggling Routes**
> Iranian fuel is transported to the nearly a dozen crossings along the porous 900-kilometer-long border with Pakistan. The gasoline and diesel are then loaded on to hundreds of pickup trucks and even motorcycles in cannisters before they are transported across Pakistan’s vast and impoverished province of Balochistan and beyond.
> Akbar Notezai, a journalist in Balochistan, said each cannister can carry around 60 liters of fuel. A pickup truck can transport up to 30 cannisters, or 1,800 liters, he said. Motorcycles can each carry several fuel cannisters.
> Iranian fuel is also smuggled by sea in boats to Pakistan’s Gwadar port, according to experts. It is unclear how the US naval blockade of Iran has affected the maritime trafficking.
> In May 2024, a leaked report written by two Pakistani intelligence agencies suggested that Iran smuggled over $1 billion worth of petrol and diesel into Pakistan annually.
> The report said up to 6 million liters of smuggled Iranian fuel was entering Pakistan daily, accounting for around 14 percent of the country’s annual consumption.
> About 2,000 vehicles and 1,300 boats were involved in the daily smuggling of fuel, the report said, adding that Iran was paid through hawala, an informal system of lenders. Using individual brokers rather than banks, the system is difficult to trace and has been used by armed groups.
> Pakistan’s military spokesman, Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, told a news conference in August 2024 that “consistent efforts” were being made to enhance security along the country’s border with Iran to restrict oil smuggling.
> “If you look at the numbers, [the fuel smuggling] has come down from 15-16 million liters per day to 5-6 million liters per day,” Chaudhry said.
> A Pakistani oil trader, who spoke to RFE/RL on condition of anonymity, said currently around 300 vehicles are loaded with fuel at each of the crossings along the Iran-Pakistan border every day. That is down from around 600 vehicles before a clamp down by Pakistani authorities in 2024, he said.
> Shahzada Zulfiqar, an analyst based in Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan Province, said there are indications that the smuggling is again increasing.
> Previously, he said the smuggling network was active for five days a week. “After the Iran-US war, the dealers continue the business seven days a week.“
Why would they need to smuggle? Pakistan and others don’t recognize US embargo on Iran
Good? Hopefully keeps prices lower.
Smuggling is not quite the right word. They are breaking a military blockade. That’s not the same as breaking the law.