South Korea’s joining the U.S. to impose economic sanctions on Iran will put South Korea at economic disadvantage as the two countries’ interests are mutually intertwined, said the Iranian ambassador to Korea in an interview.
“South Korea will bear negative fallout in its relations with Iran,” said the ambassador, Mohammad Reza Bakhtiari, to the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper on Saturday.
“Iran is South Korea’s fourth largest import source for crude oil. South Korea has 25 business conglomerates and 2,000 small and mid-sized companies operating in Iran. If the bilateral economic ties come to a halt, it will have negative impact on some 150,000 South South Korea’s joining the U.S. to impose economic sanctions on Iran will put South Korea at economic disadvantage as the two countries’ interests are mutually intertwined, said the Iranian ambassador to Korea in an interview.
“Iran is South Korea’s fourth largest import source for crude oil. South Korea has 25 business conglomerates and 2,000 small and mid-sized companies operating in Iran. If the bilateral economic ties come to a halt, it will have negative impact on some 150,000 South Koreans who will lose their jobs,” he said.
Bakhtiari continued: “Iran’s economy is rapidly expanding. There are many other international companies that can replace South Korean companies in Iran. So, countries that sanction Iran will end up sanction themselves.”
South Korea, a firm ally to the United States, is in a dilemma of having to follow the largely obligatory sanctions imposed on Iran by the Washington-speared U.N. Security Council while refraining from voluntary harsh measures toward Iran.
South Korean firms are concerned that any limited business with Iran will greatly undermine their long-term opportunities there in the petrochemical, construction and plant export industries amid China's growing influence.
China, which has invested heavily in Iran despite international sanctions, has said it opposes new sanctions on Iran by the U.S. and its allies, calling for more dialogue with Iran to address its uranium fuel, which Tehran insists is for power generation.
Iran’s top envoy to Seoul also emphasizing how close the two have come so far: “The two countries will celebrate their 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties next year. As there is the Teheran Road in Seoul, there are also the Seoul Park and the Seoul Bridge in Iran. The South Korean dramas are very popular in Iran. I don’t want to see our two countries’ relationship to backpedal because of this incident.”
South Korea is concerned that if it doesn’t join the U.S.-led sanctions, it would suffer demerit in its relationship with Washington.
By joining the U.S.-led Iran sanctions, "South Korea appears to be in a position to punish North Korea together with the United States. But the more efforts South Korea puts in that direction, the more Seoul will become a (diplomatic) hostage of the United States,” he said in the report.