‘Sanctions boost Iran insurance sector’

Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi has dismissed as futile the US-led sanctions against Iran, saying that Tehran has turned these threats into opportunities in the insurance sector.

According to Press TV, Rahimi in an address to the 19th National and 5th International Conference on Insurance and Development in Tehran on Monday said “Iran managed to break the monopoly of certain countries on the insurance coverage of sophisticated projects including refineries, airports and shipping.”
The Iranian official added, “In addition to covering oil tankers carrying Iran’s oil to the different parts of the world, Iranian insurance companies have foiled the enemies’ efforts to restrict Iran’s foreign trade by providing proper insurance coverage for other import and export shipments.”
Stating that Iran’s insurance industry has great potentials, Rahimi said the ground should be prepared for domestic and foreign investment in order to expand the industry.
At the beginning of 2012, the United States and the European Union imposed sanctions on Iran’s oil and financial sectors with the goal of preventing other countries from purchasing Iranian oil and conducting transactions with the Central Bank of Iran.
The US-engineered EU sanctions, which prevent member states from purchasing Iran’s oil or extending insurance coverage to tankers carrying Iranian crude, took effect on July 1.