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US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) said that millions of barrels of oil have passed through the Strait of Hormuz over the last couple of days, while claiming that Iran's oil minister quit because the country had "no economy" and "no oil".
"Iran is doing very poorly. Their economy is gone. They have inflation of almost 300 per cent. Their oil minister just quit. He said, 'We have no economy. We have no oil. We have nothing,'" Trump told reporters outside the White House. Trump also said oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz had reached levels comparable to, and at times higher than, those seen before the conflict in West Asia. "The Hormuz Strait, tremendous amounts, millions of barrels of oil, has been delivered just over the last couple of days. We're getting it through at levels that were now even and sometimes exceeding prior to the war. And we've done very well," he said. Trump's remarks come amid reports that oil exports from the Gulf have recovered significantly in recent days despite increased attacks on ships around the Strait of Hormuz. According to Al Jazeera, Gulf oil flows excluding Iran recovered to more than 81 per cent of pre-war levels in September, while crude exports from the wider Middle East exceeded pre-war levels on 14 days during the month, citing maritime intelligence firm Kpler. Trump's comments about Iran's oil minister came after Iranian state media Press TV reported that Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad had resigned from his post, with Hamid Bovard, the CEO of the state-run National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), appointed to lead the ministry until Parliament approves a new minister. According to a decree issued on Sunday and published by the Iranian presidency office, President Masoud Pezeshkian accepted Paknejad's resignation and appointed Bovard as caretaker oil minister. No reason was given for Paknejad's resignation. However, Press TV reported that earlier local media reports had suggested he could resign over disagreements with the Iranian president. Other reports cited by Press TV pointed to Paknejad's growing interventions in Iran's largest petrochemical company, PGPIC, while some said Pezeshkian was dissatisfied with the way Paknejad had handled trustees, a network of oil traders who have failed to return more than USD 10 billion worth of Iranian oil exports. (ANI)
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