U.S. lifts sanctions on food, medicine exports to Iran, Libya, Sudan
Regional-USA, Economics, 7/27/1999

U.S. sanctions against Iran, Libya and Sudan will be eased starting from Tuesday to allow American companies to sell them food, medicine and medical equipment, Deputy Treasury Secretary Stuart Eizenstat announced Monday.

"Sanctions on food, medicine and medical equipment do not generally advance our policy goals and may have adverse consequences in the humanitarian realm," Eizenstat said.

But he said companies selling humanitarian goods would need licenses from the US Treasury Department.

The easing of sanctions would offer American farmers the opportunity to sell more than 13 million tons of grain, worth as much as $2 billion, to Iran, Libya and Sudan, administration officials estimated.

Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said the new rules easing sanctions "could not have come at a better time."

On April 28, the Clinton administration announced a change in U.S. policy to exempt food, medicine and medical equipment sales from economic sanctions against Iran, Sudan and Libya. Since then, an interagency task force has been working to write new regulations.

The easing of the economic sanctions against the three countries was cheered by farm state lawmakers, who have pressed the administration to help find new export markets for U.S. growers facing some of the lowest grain and livestock prices in a generation.

The new policy generally allows licensed companies to sell "agricultural commodities and products that are intended for ultimate consumption as food by humans or animals," Eizenstat said.

The new regulations do not allow sale of non-food agricultural commodities such as cotton or tobacco, he said.

Previous Stories:
  Sudan and US sanctions changes   (5/3/1999)
  US announces sanctions changes for Libya, Sudan, Iran   (4/29/1999)

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