Middle East News
OPEC head to hold talks in Tehran on oil export via Gulf
Jan 21, 2012, 9:06 GMT
Tehran - OPEC head Abdul-Kareem Luaibi will on Saturday hold talks in Tehran with Iranian officials on oil exports via the Gulf, the Mehr news agency reported.
Luaibi decided to visit Tehran after warnings by Iranian generals that the country might close the Gulf's Strait of Hormuz - a vital international oil shipping route - if oil sanctions were imposed on the Islamic state.
Although Iranian politicians have rejected such a scenario, they had also said nothing should be ruled out if Iran's interests - namely oil exports, its main income source - were jeopardized.
Luaibi is to hold talks with Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi. A meeting with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has not yet been announced.
Some 16 to 17 million barrels of oil are reportedly exported via the Strait of Hormuz. An Iranian blockade would not only cause an international energy crisis, but also increase the probability of military confrontations.
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