Iran urges US to 'depoliticize' oil market

Tehran, Oct 3 (IANS) Iran's Petroleum Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has said that the US should not use oil market for its "political ends".

Speaking in Moscow on Wednesday, Zanganeh said the energy industry should remain apolitical to prevent unwanted and unhelpful interference by "hostile regimes" like the administration in Washington, Xinhua news agency reported.

"We believe unilateralism will not deliver, and putting pressure on Iran is not the way to restore stability and calm in the region as well as in the world," he said.

Besides, the US political use of energy pressures will put "security of energy supply at risk", he added.

Zanganeh called unilateral sanctions against Iran's oil sector by Washington as an example of US President Donald Trump's "economic terrorism against the Iranian people".

Following withdrawal from the Iranian landmark nuclear deal in 2018, Trump administration imposed wide-scale sanctions against Iran's oil exports on which the country heavily relies for its expenses.