Iranian president urges members to unite after Trump again initiates ‘maximum pressure’ sanctions campaign.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian urged OPEC members to unite against possible US sanctions on the major oil producer after US President Donald Trump said he would seek to drive Tehran’s oil exports to zero.
Pezeshkian made the comments at a meeting with OPEC Secretary-General Haitham al-Ghais, a day after Trump signed an executive order calling for a “maximum pressure” sanctions campaign on Iran, which he says aims to stop Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
OPEC’s X account on Wednesday showed al-Ghais on a visit to Iran, which assumes the rotating OPEC presidency this year.
“I believe if OPEC members are united and work together, the US would not be able to sanction and pressure one of them,” Pezeshkian said at the meeting with al-Ghais, according to Iranian state media.
Iranian crude oil exports currently stand at about 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) with the majority going to China. The loss of such a volume, equal to about 1.4 percent of the total world supply, would be significant for markets.
Pezeshkian also laid out strategies to counter US sanctions and maintain economic stability calling for self-reliance and regional cooperation.
“They think that everything we have depends on oil, and they want to stop our oil exports, while there are many ways to neutralise their goals, which we can use to solve our own problems and interact with our neighbours and provide a suitable platform for a dignified life for the people of our country,” he said.
‘Destabilise oil and energy markets’
Trump first imposed the “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran during his first term after withdrawing from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action agreement. Under the deal, struck under the administration of former US President Barack Obama, Tehran would curtail its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
Trump’s actions from 2017 to 2021 saw a sharp drop in Iranian oil exports to as little as 200,000 bpd in some months of 2020. In 2018, OPEC and allies agreed to boost supply after Trump urged producers to offset losses caused by the sanctions on Iran.
Iran’s oil exports rose to the highest since 2018 during the term of President Joe Biden, despite continued US sanctions.
Iran’s Minister of Petroleum Mohsen Paknejad also told al-Ghais that imposing unilateral sanctions on crude producers would destabilise energy markets, the SHANA news outlet reported on Wednesday.
“Depoliticising the oil market is a vital issue for energy security. Imposing unilateral sanctions against major oil producers and putting pressure on OPEC will destabilise oil and energy markets as well as harm consumers around the world,” Paknejad said.
Paknejad also told state TV that Tehran had prepared strategies for any situation regarding US sanctions.