Iran Reacts to EU Oil-Ban Agreement

Iran has responded to the European Union’s plan to ban all oil purchases from the country because of concerns over its nuclear program, accusing the West of waging “an economic war” through recent sanctions. “The enemies of the Islamic Republic’s regime, with all their tricks, have not been able to chain the nation, and now they want to chain the economy,” Iran’s finance minister said on Thursday. The Iranian government claims that its nuke program is peaceful, but the U.S. and other Western countries say a U.N. report reveals Iran has considered building an atomic bomb in the past. Analysts say that despite the new measures, it’s very possible that the Iranian government will continue to move forward with developing its nuclear program.