TEHRAN: Iran would use every possible means to export its oil, country's Oil Minister Bijan Zangeneh said on Sunday, and stressed that exporting crude is Tehran's legitimate right.
"We will use every possible way to export our oil and we will not succumb to America's pressure because exporting oil is Iran's legitimate right," Sputnik quoted Zangeneh as saying.
The Iranian energy industry had become the first target of sanctions imposed by the United States last year in the aftermath of the latter's decision to withdraw from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal.
The sanctions had impacted New Delhi, which was the second-largest consumer of Iran's oil. In the months preceding the sanctions, India moved to other supply sources such as Saudi Arabia to make up for the lost volumes.
According to various estimates, Iran's crude oil exports were cut by more than 80 per cent since sanctions were re-imposed.
Meanwhile, China has pulled out of developing phase 11 of the South Pars field, the Iranian oil minister informed.