Zarif: India challenges US sanctions and will continue to buy Iranian crude oil

Teheran Foreign Minister makes announcement on the sidelines of a meeting with his counterpart in New Delhi. India is Iran's second-largest oil buyer. Between the two countries a "collaboration across the board". The price of crude oil continues to rise on global markets.

Tehran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - India is committed to buying Iranian oil and continuing economic cooperation between the two nations. This was stated by the Foreign Minister of Teheran, after a meeting with his Indian counterpart a few weeks after the entry into force of the second part of the US sanctions, aimed at the sale of hydrocarbons.

The Islamic Republic is the third largest producer in the OPEC nations (the organization that unites oil exporting nations). The face-to-face meeting between Mohammad Javad Zarif and Sushma Swaraj took place yesterday in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

"Our Indian friends - underlined Zarif - have always been categorical in their intention to continue the economic cooperation and the importation of oil from Iran. I could hear these same statements from the voice of my Indian counterpart ".

New Delhi is the second largest Iranian oil buyer, after China; In recent weeks India has already reduced the volume of crude oil purchased, but has not yet officially expressed its intention to reduce imports, as requested by Washington. "We have an all-encompassing cooperation with India - added the Iranian minister - and this also includes cooperation in the energy sector, because Iran has always been a reliable source of energy for India".

Zarif concluded by underlining that the Islamic Republic wants to "expand" bilateral relations with India.

Last May, US President Donald Trump ordered the withdrawal from  (the JCPOA) nuclear agreement strongly wanted by his predecessor Barack Obama, introducing new sanctions against Tehran,  "the hardest sanctions in history" . A decision that caused a significant drop in the Iranian economy and a collapse in oil sales; it was primarily the weakest and most vulnerable part of the population to pay the costs.

Meanwhile, the price of oil continues to rise, with international investors maneuvering to try to mitigate the effects of the war launched by the White House to the crude oil of the ayatollahs. Oil prices are coming to a close with the WTI crude oil contracts expiring in November, earning 10 cents more per 72.33 dollars a barrel. Brent remains stationary at 81.71 dollars