Iran says oil industry hit by US pressures

TEHRAN (AFP) – Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri Hamaneh has lamented that the development of
Iran’s oil industry was suffering from US pressure.

“Iran has been under different sanctions for years and many companies have not been able to cooperate with our country for fear of US pressures,” Vaziri Hamaneh said, according to the semi-official news agency Fars on Tuesday.

“They even do not easily deliver some dual-purpose equipment that we had previously bought. They cause trouble for us under different pretexts,” he said.

“Foreign banks have been refusing to cooperate in the field of investment and financing,” he said, adding that in response Iran has put its focus on domestic sources to replace foreign companies.

AFP