Japan and 10 EU countries will be exempt from U.S. sanctions on the import of Iranian crude for another six months.
The U.S. granted the extension because those countries are now buying much less Iranian oil.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury announced that it has added another six individuals and four companies to its blacklist linked to Iran’s petroleum industry.
The United States has imposed widespread sanctions on Iran’s oil and financial sectors in order to pressure Iran in nuclear negotiations.
Reports indicate that Japan has reduced its Iranian oil imports by 38.1 percent compared to the same period last year.
The 10 EU members, according to U.S. Foreign Secretary John Kerry, have not purchased any oil from Iran since July 2012. These countries are Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Britain.
In December, the U.S. will decide whether to extend the exemptions granted to China, India, South Korea and other importers of Iranian oil.
The U.S. claims its efforts have cut Iran’s oil exports by 58 percent since 2011.
