Iran will close the Strait of Hormuz if its oil exports are subjected to foreign sanctions, the Islamic Republic’s official news agency reported. 

“If they impose sanctions on Iran’s oil exports, then even one drop of oil cannot flow from the Straits of Hormuz,” IRNA quoted Mohammad Reza Rahimi, Iran’s first vice-president, as saying, referring to Western countries.

Oil from Persian Gulf countries travels through the Straits of Hormuz on its way to oil-importing countries around the world. The strait is the Persian Gulf’s only outlet and is bordered by Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

In other news reports, an Iranian government minister acknowledged that Western sanctions are affecting the Islamic Republic’s economy. Iran’s deputy oil minister, Ahmad Qalebani, told the official Iranian Students’ News Agency that Iran’s crude oil production in 2011 had declined from the previous year due to a lack of foreign investment stemming from the sanctions, The New York Times reported. Iran is producing about 3.4 million barrels of oil a day this year, about half a million fewer than last year. – JTA