Washington warns US sanctions could slash Iran’s oil exports by 75%

Washington has warned that US sanctions were capable of slashing Iran’s oil exports to a quarter of current levels, with shale producers among global suppliers that would help fill the gap.

This warning was made by White House Energy Secretary Chris Wright during a Bloomberg TV interview, Caliber.Az reports.

Sanctions could “definitely” reduce the Middle Eastern country's crude exports to levels last seen under President Donald Trump’s first administration — below 400,000 barrels per day — according to Wright.

With OPEC+ ramping up output and U.S. oil production on the rise, Washington has significant leverage to maintain stable global supplies while supporting Trump’s goal of driving prices down, Wright noted.

“Given current US production and the scale of today’s global oil market, we can absolutely withstand a sharp cut in Iranian exports,” he said.

His remarks come just hours ahead of a scheduled meeting between U.S. and Iranian officials in Oman on April 12, where both sides are expected to explore terms for a potential agreement aimed at preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Tehran, which maintains that its nuclear program is strictly for civilian energy use, has indicated a willingness to return to the negotiating table in exchange for sanctions relief that would ease the pressure on its economy and energy exports.

The talks mark the highest-level engagement between the two nations since 2022, taking place amid Trump’s renewed warnings of devastating military action should negotiations fail.

By Nazrin Sadigova