Posted by December 6, 2009
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“We shouldn’t be using California consumers’ money to help prop up the really repressive regime in Iran,” Poizner said.
California’s Insurance Commissioner wants insurance money out of Iran, and one Iran expert believes economic pressure on the regime in Iran could be more effective now with a deteriorating economy.California Insurance Commissioner and gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner, urged a nationwide divestment effort in Iran at this weekend’s National Association of Insurance Commissioners meeting in San Francisco.
A recent probe found no investments directly in the government of Iran, but rather a loophole where money is funneled to Iran through third party companies primarily in South America, China, Russia and Europe.
Director of Iranian Studies at Stanford University, Dr. Abbas Milani, says up to this point, it has been tough to pressure the Iranian regime.
“Because it has oil and gas to pay for and offer China and Russia what they both need, it has been difficult to put economic pressure on the regime,” he said.
But he says the horizon for the Iranian regime now looks bleak because of the global economic downturn. The regime is facing harsh choices, he says, including reducing subsidies they now pay to the people.