Obama moves ahead with Iran sanctions

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama said Friday he was plowing ahead with potential sanctions against countries that keep buying oil from Iran, including allies of the United States, in a deepening campaign to starve Iran of money for its disputed nuclear program.

The world oil market is tight but deep enough to keep the squeeze on Iran, Obama said.

The sanctions aim to further isolate Iran's central bank, which processes nearly all of the nation's oil purchases, from the global economy. Obama's move clears the way for the United States to penalize foreign financial institutions that do oil business with Iran by barring them from having a U.S.-based affiliate or doing business here.

Obama's goal is to tighten the pressure on Iran, not allies, and already the administration exempted 10 European Union countries and Japan from the threat of sanctions because they cut their oil purchases from Iran. Other nations have about three months to significantly reduce such imports before sanctions would kick in.

Still, administration officials said that Obama is ready to slap sanctions on U.S. partners and that his action Friday was another signal.

At issue for Obama was ruling, by Friday, whether oil supplies were sufficient to keep demanding that nations cut off Iran -- not an insignificant matter in a time of high election-year gas prices at home.

Obama gave his OK after considering available reserves, increased oil production by some countries and global economic conditions. The White House emphasized that he would continue to keep an eye on the oil market to make sure that it -- and its consumers -- could withstand shrinking purchases out of Iran.

Meanwhile, raising campaign cash in reliably Democratic Vermont, Obama Friday called this year's presidential race a "clarifying election" that will determine what the country stands for.

Obama spoke at a $7,500-per-person luncheon fundraiser, where he said the general election would be a "healthy debate for the nation."