Find out how Iran has evaded U.S. sanctions over the last six months by importing Turkish gold.
Iran importing gold to evade economic sanctions, Turkish official says
November 29, 2012 -- Updated 1627 GMT (0027 HKT)
Turkey swaps Iran gold for gas
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Deputy prime minister describes what amounts to a gold-for-oil barter system
- Government says Iran has imported billions of dollars worth of gold from Turkey since March
- In April, Turkey exported $1.2 billion in gold to Iran, a 438.2% jump from the previous year
- Economists say the gold-for-oil trade shows the U.S.-led sanctions are hurting Iran
Turkey's deputy prime minister has described what amounts to a gold-for-oil barter system.
"Why did, all of the
sudden, Turkey's gold exports, especially gold bullion, go up?" Ali
Babacan asked while speaking before a parliamentary budget commission
this month. The official transcript of his statements was published by a
Turkish government website Wednesday.
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"An important part of
that is Iran," he said. "When Turkey buys Iranian oil, we pay for it in
Turkish lira. ... However, it is not possible for Iran to take that
money as dollars into its own country due to international restrictions,
the U.S.A.'s sanctions. Therefore, when Iran cannot take this money
back as currency, they withdraw Turkish lira and buy gold from our
market. They take the gold back to their own country."
According to Turkish
government statistics, Iran has imported billions of dollars worth of
gold from Turkey since it was ejected from the SWIFT international
electronic banking system in March.
Babacan's rhetorical
question and answer resolved suspicions that Turkish economists have had
for months, after they noticed an enormous spike in Turkey's gold
exports to Iran in April.
"Our gold has always
been there, the Iranians never paid any attention to it up until the
last year when they were kicked out of the SWIFT banking system," said
Atilla Yesilada, an economic analyst with Global Source Turkey.
The Turkish government
reported that Iran leapt to first place among Turkey's export markets in
April. That month, Turkey exported $1.2 billion in gold to Iran, a
438.2% jump from the previous year.
"Turkey is the big hole, the big gap in the wall of sanctions," Yesilada said.
He was pointing to the
U.S.-led campaign to impose an economic blockade on Iran. Many
economists say Washington has effectively declared economic war on Iran
because of disagreements over its controversial nuclear program. The
U.S. accuses Iran of secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons, charges
that Tehran has long denied.
Since the sanctions have
been unilaterally imposed by Washington, Turkey is not breaking any
international law by trading oil for gold with Iran. But in doing so,
the Turks risk incurring the wrath of the U.S. government, an important
military and political ally.
"At the end of July, the
President issued an order that authorizes Treasury to impose sanctions
on anyone who helps the Government of Iran acquire U.S. dollars or
precious metals, including gold," a U.S. Treasury Department spokesman
wrote to CNN this week, on condition he not be named. "We can't comment
on any investigations that may be ongoing."
Economists say the gold-for-oil trade shows the sanctions are hurting Iran.
"This is very, very 19th
century, taking gold around to manage your international sanctions,"
said Djavad Salehi-Isfahani, a professor of economics at the Virginia
Polytechnic Institute.
"Iran lost its ability to sell oil, get electronic credit and use that to buy other stuff."
There has been a great
deal of speculation about how the gold is physically being transferred
from Turkey to Iran. Those questions extend also to the United Arab
Emirates.
In August, Turkish
government statistics show that the UAE suddenly replaced Iran as
Turkey's chief export market. However, the main Turkish export to the
UAE was gold -- $1.9 billion worth in August alone. Dubai has
traditionally been the world's most important economic gateway to Iran.
In his appearance before
the parliamentary commission, Deputy Prime Minister Babacan declined to
comment on the logistics of the gold shipments. Instead, unconfirmed
stories have swirled in the Turkish media of gold bullion being
hand-carried out of the country in suitcases.
"We need to be more
transparent about what Iran is doing with those gold bars, which
apparently are being transported by physical couriers using 50-kilo
(110-pound) bags, which is the limit of how much gold you can take out
of Turkey," said Yesilada, the Turkish economist.
"There are really
several James Bondian-like aspects to this, which no government would
engage in, in an official or commercial transaction."
"The picture looks like a
James Bond movie. You have individuals with black suitcases carrying
gold," said Behzad Yaghmaian, an Iranian-American political economist at
Ramapo College.
"This could not have
happened in any form without the knowledge of the Turkish state. This
amount could not have left the country to go to Iran without the state
knowing about it."
The Turkish government has not responded to a written request from CNN to comment on the gold trade.
Some concerned observers
worry the economic intrigue threatens to draw attention from the
growing impact the U.S.-led sanctions are having on ordinary Iranians.
"Sanctions are a form of
collective punishment on the Iranian people," said Yaghmaian, the
author of "Social Change in Iran: An Eyewitness Account of Dissent,
Defiance and New Movements for Rights."
"Iranians who oppose the
Islamic Republic (of Iran), who have been under pressure by the Islamic
Republic, who have been subjected to different forms of violence by the
Islamic Republic, are once again facing a new form of violence that is
economic violence."
Iranians have watched
their buying power collapse over the last year, as the value of the
Iranian rial plunged. There have also been reports of shortages of
foreign pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, since Iranian companies
have found it next to impossible to pay foreign suppliers because of
restrictions on international banking.
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