Irans Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh says the countrys crude production can reach four million barrels per day in less than three months if the Western sanctions imposed on the country over its nuclear energy program are lifted.Speaking to reporters upon his arrival in Vienna on Tuesday on the eve of a meeting on the output of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Zanganeh called sanctions against Iran as illegal and said it is not possible to say when they would be lifted.
"After the sanctions are lifted, [in] less than three months we will be able to produce four" million barrels of oil per day, he added.
We think that it is not fair. These limitations are [an] illegal action against Iran and we will do everything we can to increase our production, the Iranian minister said.
Now we are exporting 1.5 million barrels [of crude] per day and this is an effect of the sanctions, and as I said we think that we are entitled to do everything to increase the level of our output and the level of exports, he pointed out.
He added that no one can say when a final deal between Iran and the P5+1 group would be finalized, saying, This is a political discussion. It's a complicated issue and difficult discussion.
Zanganeh emphasized that the final agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue can be reached if the Sextet of world powers show good will.
Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council - China, Russia, Britain, France and the United States - plus Germany have been holding talks to iron out their differences and reach a final deal to end the standoff over the Islamic Republics nuclear energy program.
The next round of nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 is scheduled for June 16-20 in the Austrian capital, Vienna. The two sides held the latest round of nuclear negotiations in Vienna in May.
By Press TV
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