Brazil judge orders Petrobras to refuel Iranian ships

TEHRAN, Jul. 26 (MNA) – Brazil’s Supreme Court judge on Thursday ordered the country’s state oil giant Petrobras to refuel two Iranian ships stranded off the country’s coast. Supreme Court Justice Dias Toffoli issued the refueling order behind the closed doors on Thursday, overturning an injunction that had authorized the oil firm to withhold the […]

TEHRAN, Jul. 26 (MNA) – Brazil’s Supreme Court judge on Thursday ordered the country’s state oil giant Petrobras to refuel two Iranian ships stranded off the country’s coast.

Supreme Court Justice Dias Toffoli issued the refueling order behind the closed doors on Thursday, overturning an injunction that had authorized the oil firm to withhold the service from Iranian vessels.

The Iranian vessels have been stranded for weeks at the Brazilian port of Paranagua, unable to head back to Iran due to lack of fuel.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro had said that local companies were warned about the extent of the US sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

“There is this problem; the US unilaterally imposed these sanctions on Iran. Brazilian companies have been informed by us about this situation and are running a risk there,” Bolsonaro told reporters last Friday while saying he was working to forge a very close relationship with the United States.

“I, particularly, am getting close to [US President Donald] Trump, I was received twice by him. It is the No. 1 economy in the world, our second-largest market, and now Brazil has its arms open to do deals and partnerships.”

The order came after Iran’s top envoy to Brazil said Tehran could suspend imports from the Latin American country if the issue was not resolved.

Tehran imports goods worth about $2 billion a year from Brazil.

On Tuesday, Iran’s Ambassador in Brasilia Seyed Ali Saghaeyan told Brazilian officials that Tehran could easily find new suppliers of corn, soybeans and meat if the South American country refused to permit the refueling of the vessels.

“I told the Brazilians that they should solve the issue, not the Iranians,” Saghaeyan said in an interview at the Iranian Embassy in Brasilia.

“If it’s not solved, maybe the authorities in Tehran may want to take some decision because this is a free market and other countries are available,” he added.

Iran is one of the largest grain importers from Brazil and the complication with the Iranian ships is already worrying Brazilian traders about the broader impact on trade with the Islamic Republic.