Iran's Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said Thursday that Iranian oil exports have come to a complete halt, according to a Telegram report. 'Currently, Iran's oil exports have stopped and we are not exporting oil,' Hemmati stated, in what appears to be the first high-level Iranian acknowledgment of the effectiveness of the US naval blockade and sanctions regime.
Iran's Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati acknowledged Thursday morning that Iranian oil exports have entirely ceased, marking a sharp reversal of earlier official claims that the country continued to sell crude despite US sanctions. 'Currently, Iran's oil exports have stopped and we are not exporting oil,' Hemmati said, according to a Telegram report.
The admission comes amid mounting evidence that the US naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz and tightened sanctions enforcement have effectively shut down Iran's primary revenue stream. As The Zioneer previously reported, the Financial Times cited satellite imagery and ship-tracking data on August 8 showing no oil loaded at Iran's Kharg Island — which handles roughly 90% of its crude exports — since July 31. Earlier reporting by The Zioneer documented a series of US measures: the Treasury revoked authorization for Iranian oil exports on July 7 following tanker attacks, and US Energy Secretary had warned that no Iranian crude would exit the Strait of Hormuz.
The statement by Hemmati, the regime's top financial official, contradicts earlier assertions by Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad in July that exports were 'continuing despite the cancellation of US waivers.' It is the strongest indication yet that the US campaign to cut off Iranian oil revenue — a central pillar of the current confrontation — has achieved its goal, at least for now.
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