Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi says the upcoming high-profile Oil Show in Tehran demonstrates the failure of international sanctions against the Islamic Republic’s energy sector.

The minister said in a message on Tuesday that the 18th International Oil, Gas, Refining and Petrochemical Exhibition, scheduled to kick off on Thursday, is a “clear manifestation of the failure and ineffectiveness” of sanctions engineered by the United States.


“They (the sanctions) have not only failed to paralyze Iran, but also contributed to the blossoming of national domestic talents in the light of self-sufficiency campaign,” Qasemi stated.

The minister went on to say that Iran’s oil sector will face no obstacle in playing its “strategic role as the most secure source of energy supply [to the world].”

Qasemi added that the Oil Show will put on exhibit the “technical and industrial strength” of Iran’s energy sector.

More than 1,000 Iranian and foreign companies are expected to attend the four-day exhibition.

At the beginning of 2012, the US and the European Union imposed new sanctions on Iran’s oil and financial sectors with the goal of preventing other countries from purchasing Iranian oil and conducting transactions with the Central Bank of Iran.

Washington and the EU used the false claim that Iran is pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program to impose the illegal sanctions. Iran, however, categorically rejects the allegation.

News ID 184609