Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji said a few days ago that his country is determined to increase its oil exports, despite the sanctions imposed by the United States on Iran’s crude sales, adding that using oil sanctions as a “political tool” will harm the global oil market.

“There is a strong will in Iran to increase oil exports despite the unfair and illegal US sanctions,” Oji told Iranian television. The minister did not give details about Tehran’s plan to get around the sanctions, but he promised good developments regarding Iran’s oil sales in the coming months.

It should be noted that oil exports represent the main source of revenue in Iran, and these exports have declined sharply in light of the US sanctions that were re-imposed 3 years ago, after Washington abandoned the 2015 nuclear agreement that Tehran signed with 6 of the world’s leading countries. Sources in the shipping sector indicating a decline in Iranian oil exports from about 2.8 million barrels per day in 2018, to levels of up to 600,000 barrels per day at the present time.

Oji Ali stressed that Iran will return to its pre-sanctions crude production level once US sanctions are lifted. He reiterated that his country opposes the use of oil as a political tool that harms the global oil market.