New sanctions against Iran cause global recession; Iran, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Afghanistan presidents hold joint meeting on Afghanistan in Dushanbe
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    • According to reports, the recent western sanctions against Iran have triggered an oil price spike that could trigger a global recession. Oil prices hit a record high in euro terms earlier this month and analysts now believe they may have already dragged the eurozone into recession. New sanctions have ratcheted up tensions and the price of oil as traders worry about the risk of hostilities, including an attack by Israel on Iranian nuclear facilities. US President Barack Obama conceded that tensions over Iran were “adding a $20 or $30 premium to oil prices”, which are up some 20 percent since December. Earlier, IMF chief Christine Lagarde warned that any interruption in oil supplies from Iran could increase oil prices by a further 20 to 30 percent and cause an economic shock. “A sudden and brutal rise in the price of oil” from Brent crude’s current levels of around $125 a barrel “would have serious consequences on the global economy” until other oil-exporting nations were able to bridge the gap, she added. Ernst & Young’s Eurozone Forecast warned a spike in oil prices to a sustained level of $150 a barrel would cause a recession of 1.0 percent in the European Union this year, double the milder 0.5 percent contraction currently forecast.1

    In another development, according to reports, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in the Tajik capital of Dushanbe to attend the ancient Persian New Year (Noruz) festivities, which will be held on March 25, 2012. The Persian New Year started on March 20. Noruz, the ancient celebration of the Persian New Year that begins on the first day of spring, has been registered on the UNESCO List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The presidents of Iran, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan will attend a trilateral summit in Dushanbe. In addition, the three presidents will hold a joint meeting with the Pakistani president on the same day to discuss issues facing Afghanistan.2

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