TEHRAN – Iran’s Minister of Economic and Financial affairs Seyyed Ehsan Khandouzi says the country’s oil exports have increased 40 percent compared to the time when President Ebrahim Raisi took office.
Khandouzi said this is while the U.S. sanctions on Iran are still in place and Tehran and the P4+1 group have not yet reached an agreement in the Vienna talks.
He noted the fresh U.S. sanctions on Iran, along with the COVID pandemic, over the past two years, caused the country’s economic indices to tumble down.
This growth could be achieved while U.S. anti-Iran sanctions did not decrease and the Vienna talks have not reached a definite result, Ehsan Khandouzi told Iran’s Arabic news channel of Al Alam.
American officials have confessed to their defeat in maximum pressure policy on Iran, the minister noted.
During the interview, Khandouzi said the new Iranian government, which took office in August, 2021, has stressed importance of playing a special role in the oil and gas markets.
Referring to new round of U.S. economic sanctions against Iran in the past three years which have led to a decline in Iran’s economic indexes, the finance minister said the coronavirus pandemic, rise in the prices, and inflation been effective on the decrease in economic growth.
He hoped that the plans made by the new Iranian government would improve economy in the country.
As he underlined, President Ebrahim Raisi pays special attention to making use of regional capacities and stresses the need to focus on economic solidarity among the regional countries.
About the situation of economy in Iran, the minister said that Islamic Republic of Iran makes effort to use its oil and gas as supporter for growth in national economic sectors.
He further underlined the importance of using national capabilities and regional cooperation in order to nullify the sanctions.
About the impact of the U.S. sanctions against Iran, Khandouzi said they surely slowed the speed of Iran’s economy; but the country could find new opportunities from the heart of the sanctions.