Iranian Oil Minister, Venezuelan President discuss ways to boost ties

Nicolas Maduro tweeted, referring to this constructive meeting with Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji, that ways were discussed to strengthen brotherly relations and cooperate on energy issues.

Venezuelan state television also broadcast footage of the meeting at the Presidential Palace in Miraflores.
According to a statement issued by the Venezuelan Ministry of Petroleum, the Iranian Minister of Petroleum had previously met with his Venezuelan counterpart Tareck Zaidan El Aissami to discuss ways and mechanisms to overcome the unilateral coercive measures imposed by the US government and its allies. No further details have been released about the meeting.

Javad Owji's visit to Venezuela, the world with the highest crude oil reserves, came just weeks after US officials met amid rising global crude oil prices over the Ukraine war.

In March, the US delegation held a meeting with Nicolas Maduro.

On the other hand, Iran, which is one of the main oil producers, announced last month that its production capacity has returned to the level before the US sanctions were imposed in 2018.
Bilateral relations between the two major world oil producers continued and strengthened from 1999 to 2013 with the support of the late socialist leader Hugo Chevez, and then with the support of Nicolas Maduro.

Venezuela, which is under strict US sanctions, is an ally of Iran, Russia and China. In 2020, Iran sent aid to address the country's domestic shortages with two ships, and in the same year, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif announced that Iran would remain on Venezuela's side and support the country.