Iran-Azadegan Development Contract: Japan Caught in the Crossfire of American and Iranian Pressures

摘要

The Iranian authorities were hoping to sign a contract with a Japanese consortium in late June or early July for the development of the giant Azadegan oilfield, which contains recoverable reserves of around 6 billion barrels. They were forgetting the determination of the United States to prevent, or at any rate delay, this development. There is certainly nothing new about American pressure on foreign investors in the hydrocarbon sector, but the extent of that pressure has varied considerably over they years. In the past few weeks, however, the nuclear issue, which is one of Washington's primary concerns, has given renewed impetus to American militancy in this respect, which is highly embarrassing for Tokyo.