India Continues Talks With US on Waiver From Iran Oil Sanctions - Official

HOUSTON (Sputnik) - India is continuing talks with the US in a bid to ensure the extension of exemptions from Washington's sanctions targeting countries importing Iranian oil, the Indian Petroleum secretary has told Sputnik.

“With respect to Iran, the government of India is talking to the United States [so that] the exemption continues until May. We are in talks with them and let’s see what happens, let’s wait for the result", Indian Petroleum Secretary M. M. Kutty said on the sidelines of CERAWeek in Houston, Texas.

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The remark comes after on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the conference that Washington intended to drive Iran's oil exports, which is the country's largest source of income, to zero. India was granted a waiver from Iran oil sanctions in November and has been seeking to extend it until May.

US sanctions against Iran were reinstated last year after the United States withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which provided for the relief of economic sanctions against Tehran in return for Iran's pledge to keep its nuclear program peaceful.

China, France, Germany, Iran, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union — the other signatories to the Iran nuclear deal — have slammed Washington's withdrawal from the agreement and the reinstatement of sanctions, saying it threatened not only Iran but also countries and companies that continued to do business with Tehran.