Iran Oil Ministry: US energy cooperation “possible” amid nuclear talks
Shafaq News- Tehran
Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said cooperation with the United States in the oil and gas sector is “possible” as indirect nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington concluded the second round in Geneva.
“It is not clear whether the oil and gas cooperation between Tehran and Washington will now be operational or not… Everything is possible,” Paknejad said in remarks reported by Tasnim News Agency.
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On Sunday, Hamid Ghanbari, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy, said energy cooperation has been included in talks with the United States this February in Oman and Switzerland. Speaking at a meeting at the Iranian Chamber of Commerce, Ghanbari said that “common interests in the oil and gas fields, joint fields, mineral investments, and even the purchase of aircraft have been included in the negotiations with the United States.”
The United States and Iran have had no formal diplomatic relations since 1980, and cooperation in strategic sectors such as oil and gas has long been restricted by US sanctions targeting Iran’s energy industry. US President Donald Trump, since assuming his second term, has intensified the “maximum pressure” campaign on Iranian oil exports, focusing on dismantling what US officials describe as a “shadow fleet” used to circumvent sanctions and deterring international buyers through expanded trade penalties.
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