A member of the Austrian Armed Forces walks past Coburg Palace, the site of a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) meeting, in Vienna, Austria February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo

March 12 (Reuters) – The United States’ seizure of Iranian tankers in recent months has not stopped sanctions-hit Tehran from increasing its oil exports, Iran’s oil minister said on Saturday.

“The United States has repeatedly breached Iranian tankers over the past few months to prevent the export of cargoes,” Javad Owji said in an interview carried by Iranian media.

“When the enemy realized they couldn’t stop our exports and contracts, they attacked our ships,” Owji said.

His remarks follow reports of a recent seizure of an Iranian tanker in the Bahamas, even as indirect talks between Iran and the United States in Vienna to revive a 2015 nuclear deal could see the end of the deal. US sanctions in exchange for Tehran limiting its nuclear work.

A last-minute request from Russia, a close ally of Iran, forced world powers gathered in the Austrian capital to halt indefinitely, despite a largely completed text.

On March 5, Russia unexpectedly asked for sweeping guarantees that its trade with Iran would not be affected by the sanctions imposed on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine – a demand that Western powers consider unacceptable and that Washington said she would not accept.

“Iran’s oil exports have increased under the toughest sanctions and without waiting for the outcome of the Vienna talks,” Owji said.

The increase is due to “different methods used to win contracts and find different buyers,” Owji said.

The rise had “even increased the bargaining power of the friends in Vienna”, he said, without elaborating.

Tehran’s oil exports have been limited since former US President Donald Trump quit the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions in 2018.

Iran considers US sanctions illegal and has said it will do everything possible to circumvent them.

Its oil exports hit more than one million barrels per day (bpd) for the first time in nearly three years, based on estimates from companies that track flows, reflecting increased shipments to China .

Iran increased its exports in 2021 despite sanctions, according to estimates by oil industry consultants and analysts. But they remained well below the 2.5 million bpd shipped before the reinstatement of sanctions.

[email protected] Editing by Mark Potter

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