Imports/Exports
Slightly lower U.S. crude oil production in 2000, combined with slightly increased oil demand, led the United States to import (gross) an estimated 11.5 MMBD of oil (crude and products) during 2000, representing around 58% of total U.S. oil demand. Around 45% of this oil came from OPEC nations, with Persian Gulf sources accounting for about 22% of U.S. oil imports during the year. Overall, the top suppliers of oil to the United States during 2000 were Canada (1.81 MMBD), Saudi Arabia (1.57 MMBD), Venezuela (1.55 MMBD), and Mexico (1.37 MMBD).
U.S. Energy Sanctions Issues
The United States maintains energy sanctions against several countries, including Iran, Iraq, and Libya (an oil embargo against Serbia was lifted by President Clinton on October 12, 2000). Iraq remains under comprehensive sanctions imposed after its invasion of Kuwait in August 1990. Iran and Libya are affected by the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act (ILSA), passed unanimously by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Clinton in August 1996. ILSA imposes mandatory and discretionary sanctions on non-U.S. companies which invest more than $20 million annually (lowered in August 1997 from $40 million) in the Iranian oil and natural gas sectors. The passage of ILSA was not the first U.S. sanction against Iran. In early 1995, President Clinton signed two Executive Orders which prohibited U.S. companies and their foreign subsidiaries from conducting business with Iran. The Orders also banned any "contract for the financing of the development of petroleum resources located in Iran." On March 13, 2001, President Bush, citing threats posed by Iran to U.S. national security, extended Clinton's two Executive Orders on Iran for another 6 months. Meanwhile, ILSA is due to expire August 5, 2001, and Congress will need to decide whether or not to renew the sanctions.
As a result of the Executive Orders (but prior to the enactment of ILSA), U.S.-based Conoco was obligated to abrogate a $550-million contract to develop Iran's offshore Sirri A and E oil and natural gas fields. On August 19, 1997, President Clinton signed Executive Order 13059 reaffirming that virtually all trade and investment activities by U.S. citizens in Iran was prohibited. The threat of secondary U.S. sanctions has also deterred some multinationals from investing in Iran. In August 1996, for instance, Australia's BHP withdrew from a proposed $3-billion pipeline project to transport Iranian natural gas to Pakistan and India under the threat of U.S sanctions.
A consortium led by Total (France), Gazprom (Russia), and Petronas (Malaysia) to develop Iran's South Pars natural gas field was granted a waiver under Section 9(c) of ILSA by the United States in May 1998. At the time, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright noted that the United States had concluded that sanctions would not prevent this project from proceeding, and stated that the waiver was also granted because of the cooperation achieved between the United States, the EU, and Russia in accomplishing ILSA's primary objective of inhibiting Iran's ability to develop weapons of mass destruction and support of terrorism.
The United States modified its sanctions on April 28, 1999 to allow shipments of donated clothing, food and medicine for humanitarian reasons (trade in informational materials such as books and movies is also allowed). On the same day that the humanitarian exceptions were made, the U.S. denied Mobil's request to swap crude oil from Kazakhstan with Iran. On March 17, 2000, former Secretary of State Albright announced that the United States would ease sanctions on Iran, would seek to expand contacts between American and Iranian scholars, professionals, artists, athletes, and nongovernmental organizations, and would increase efforts with Iran aimed at eventually concluding a global settlement of outstanding legal claims between the countries.
Attempts by the United States to implement ILSA have run into opposition from a number of foreign governments. The European Union (EU) opposes the enforcement of ILSA sanctions on its members, and on November 22, 1996 passed resolution 2271 directing EU members to not comply with ILSA. On May 18, 1998, the EU and the U.S. reached an agreement on a package of measures to resolve the ILSA dispute at the EU/U.S. Summit in London, but the Summit deal is contingent upon acceptance by the U.S. Congress before full implementation may take place.
On April 5, 1999, following the Libyan handover of two suspects in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 to stand trial before a Scottish Court in the Netherlands, the United States modified its Libya sanctions on April 28, 1999 to allow shipments of donated clothing, food and medicine for humanitarian reasons (trade in informational materials such as books and movies is also allowed). However, all other U.S. sanctions against Libya remain in force. On February 1, 2001, one suspect was convicted by the Scottish court, while another was acquitted. The U.S. and British governments both said that they still expected Libya to accept responsibility for the murders, which Libya has said it would not do
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