Japan and South Korea are seeking new suppliers of crude oil to lessen their dependence on Iran, in response to US pressure to stop buying from the country.
The move comes as Tehran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, through which a third of the world’s seaborne oil trade passes, if the west imposes oil sanctions.
JX Nippon Oil & Energy, Japan’s biggest refiner, said yesterday it was talking to Saudi Arabia and other countries to find alternative supplies of crude oil. One person close to the government said Koichiro Gemba, Japan’s foreign minister, was using a visit to the Middle East to “pave the way to get more oil from Saudi”.