Iran Says It Will Block Middle East Oil Exports If It Can't Ship - Bloomberg

Iran Says It Will Block Middle East Oil Exports If It Can't Ship - Bloomberg:

Iran will halt Middle East oil exports if it’s not allowed to ship its crude through the Strait of Hormuz, according to a top military official.

If the Islamic Republic can’t use the Strait for its oil exports, “there will be no security for others either and no other crude will be exported from this region,” Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri said, state-run Mehr news agency reported. The U.S. Army and other military forces present in the Middle East “know full well that the smallest mistake in the region will bear a heavy cost for them.”

Iran has been threatening to halt exports from Hormuz, the world’s most important oil chokepoint, since early July. Bagheri’s comments come after the U.S. reimposed a set of economic sanctions that had been eased against Iran as part of a 2015 international nuclear agreement. The measures are set to intensify in November when they will target Iran’s oil sales - the lifeline of its economy.