Morteza Dehqan, the manager of the airport, did not identify the airlines no longer being served. A year ago, Iran threatened to stop supplying jet fuel to airlines from countries where it could not get jet fuel. But at that time, the sole airline that said it was not being serviced was the sole British airline to fly into Tehran, British Midland International. Dehqan said, “It is a reciprocal move.
We are not giving fuel to the airlines of countries that do not give fuel for our airlines.” However, it isn’t really reciprocal. The Iranian government has ordered the halt to fuel supplies.
But the only government known to have ordered a halt to supplies for Iranian airlines has been Switzerland. In the other cases, private firms have stopped the service.
Iran has blamed American sanctions. But the US sanctions law exempts small sales of fuel supplies, enough that jet fuel isn’t impacted.
The decision to stop fuel sales to Iranian airlines began with BP. After its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico made it a hated name in the United States, it didn’t want to risk further American ire and voluntarily stopped selling to Iranian airlines.
Then other firms joined in, presumably not wanting to take a chance on angering American buyers. But that too has changed as the European public has become angrier at Iran and more open to the idea of sanctions.
A few weeks ago, it was revealed in the London media that a small airfield near the English Channel was refueling Iranian planes.
The airfield was owned by a New Zealand company that said it has no business interests in the United States and therefore was unconcerned about American anger.
But within days, after rising criticism within England, it announced it was halting fuel supplies to Iranian aircraft.
Iranian aircraft now have to fly to a few airports in Eastern Europe where they can buy fuel to get back home to Iran. The extra stop adds about 90 minutes to the flight time.
Agence France Presse reported last week that the cessation of fuel supplies had now gone beyond Europe and that some airports in the Persian Gulf and Asia were now denying fuel to Iranian airlines. It did not, however, name any specific airports. The Islamic Republic has painted itself into a corner, however.
It has argued that it is illegal to refuse to sell jet fuel to airlines. But now it is refusing to sell jet fuel to airlines and at government order to boot.
Dehqan even went to far as to accuse foreign countries that did not provide Iranian planes with fuel of violating human rights. All this means the Islamic Republic is painting itself as violating international law and human rights