Tehran, August 5 (Xinhua) -- On the eve of the continuation of negotiations between the parties to the JCPOA on the resumption of the U.S.-Iran implementation of the treaty, the Iranian government urged Western countries to "adopt a rational attitude to ensure world energy security" and recognize that the stability of the global oil market requires the "return" of Iranian oil.
Iran urges 'depoliticization'
Iranian Oil Minister Jawad Oji said during the 31st ministerial meeting between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC oil producers on the 3rd that "depoliticization" is particularly necessary for global energy security, and "endangering energy security and exacerbating market turmoil is a lose-lose result for all parties."
Iran's Tanker Clavel sails off the high seas of the Atlantic Ocean on May 31, 2020. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Salgado)
Before the "OPEC+" ministerial meeting, major oil consumers led by the United States repeatedly urged major oil producers to expand the scale of production increases in order to stabilize oil prices and alleviate domestic inflationary pressures. However, the meeting ultimately decided to raise the average daily production by 100,000 barrels in September.
Auggie urged Western countries to "adopt a rational approach to ensuring the world's energy security." He said that the current global oil market needs the "return" of Iranian oil to meet some customer needs, which will help balance supply and demand and stabilize the market. Realizing Iran's oil export capacity requires Western powers to demonstrate political will and make political decisions.
The United States unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA in May 2018, followed by severe sanctions on almost all important economic sectors such as Iranian oil and finance, and Iran's average daily oil exports fell sharply from more than 2.5 million barrels before the sanctions to 100,000 barrels in 2020.
Market analysis believes that if the United States lifts sanctions, Iran can supply at least 1 million barrels of oil to the global market every day. Auggie said Iran is ready to increase production to return to pre-sanctions levels as soon as possible.
The 32nd Ministerial Meeting of OPEC and Non-OPEC Oil Producers will be held on September 5.
U.S. sanctions continue to increase
Public opinion has noted that Iran made the above statement on the eve of the relevant parties to the Iranian nuclear agreement to resume negotiations on the resumption of the implementation of the treaty between the United States and Iran. Ali Bagheri, deputy foreign minister of Iran and chief negotiator on the Iranian nuclear issue, arrived in Vienna, the capital of Austria, on the 4th.
Robert Marley, the U.S. Special Envoy for Iran, has also arrived in Vienna. He will negotiate with the Iranian side through Enrique Mora, deputy secretary-general of the EU External Action Agency, who presides over the negotiations.
In a post on social media, Bagheri said he expected the U.S. side to "show maturity and act responsibly."
This is the exterior view of the venue of the JCPOA talks on Iran, photographed in Vienna, Austria, on March 11. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Guo Chen
In July 2015, Iran reached a comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, China, and Germany. In May 2018, the United States unilaterally withdrew from the agreement, followed by the resumption and addition of a series of sanctions against Iraq. Since May 2019, Iran has gradually suspended its implementation of some of the terms of the agreement, but promised that the measures taken were "reversible".
Since April 2021, the parties to the Iranian nuclear agreement have held several rounds of talks in Vienna to discuss the resumption of U.S.-Iran implementation of the treaty, with the United States indirectly participating in the negotiations. Negotiations have been suspended since March. Coordinated by the European Union, U.S.-Iranian representatives held indirect talks in The Qatari capital Doha at the end of June, but no progress was made.
This is the scene of the meeting of the Political Director-General of the Joint Commission on the Comprehensive Agreement on the Iranian Nuclear Issue, photographed in Vienna, Austria, on December 27, 2021. Xinhua News Agency (Photo courtesy of EU Mission to Vienna)
Before the current round of Negotiations in Vienna resumed, the U.S. government again wielded the stick of sanctions against Iran, announcing sanctions on some entities involved in Iran's oil and petrochemical trade. U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that the U.S. side will continue to use sanctions to "crack down on Iran's oil, petroleum products and petrochemical exports" before resuming the implementation of the Iranian nuclear agreement.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani responded that the U.S. government's obsession with using sanctions as a tool to strike others is a sign of the U.S. hegemonic system.