Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh on Saturday accused US President Donald Trump of insulting OPEC by telling it to boost production and reduce prices. He said Iranian oil production and exports had not changed as a result of the mounting US pressure.
Trump on Wednesday accused the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries of pushing up prices and called on US allies such as Saudi Arabia to pump more if they want Washington to continue protecting them against what the US says is their “top foe” Iran, Reuters reported.
“Trump every day sends a new message that leads to uncertainty in the market,” Zanganeh said in an interview with state television.
He went on to say that “Trump’s order to OPEC members to increase production is indeed a great insult to those governments and nations and destabilizes the market.”
The minister said Iranian oil production and exports had not changed as a result of the US pressure tactics.
Iran, OPEC’s third-largest producer, is facing US sanctions on its oil exports that are prompting some buyers to cut purchases.
The United States in May said it was walking away from an international deal on Iran’s nuclear program, and said it would impose fresh sanctions on Iran’s energy sector.
South Korea halted in July all Iranian oil shipments for the first time in six years amid the US pressure.
Iran has implied that it would block oil exports through a key Persian Gulf waterway in retaliation for US attempts to reduce Iranian oil sales to zero.
Caption: Trump has called on the US’ junior Arab allies such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE to pump more to check rising crude oil prices.
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