Despite western economic sanctions and imposed pressure, volume of Iran's exports during current (Iranian) year (ending on March 20, 2011) would have increased by 20 percent year on year, Deputy Commerce Minister Masoud Movahhedi said at the meeting with the representatives of Lorestan province craftsmen and industrialists, IRNA reported.
"Iran is among the 17 top countries in the world in terms of economic growth, which is a great success keeping in mind that our country has recently begun applying its goal orientation of subsidies law and the decreased gap among social classes in Iran," Movahhedi added.
"All the same we have to work for achieving a higher economic position in the world," he said.
He said that one of the prerequisites for achieving the country's deserve economic status is truly applying the Constitutional Article 44 (on privatization), arguing, "The reason why the Us-led west has imposed sanctions against us is that they want to lower our country's economic status, because there is nothing they can do regarding Iran's political influence in the region and the world."
The deputy commerce minister said that the government is after decreasing its dependence on oil economy and the incomes of the subsidies law is supposed to make up for a part of it, in addition to the proper collection of taxes.
"By materializing the objective of the country's Twenty Year Perspective Development Project we can by the year 2025 become the leading political, economic and social power of the region," he said.
In June 2010 the U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 1929, enacting new sanctions against Iran over its refusal to stop enriching uranium. Later, the U.S. Congress and foreign ministers of all EU countries approved the imposing of additional unilateral sanctions aimed mainly against the energy, banking and financial sectors of Iran.
The restrictions imposed by the European Union include the ban on the sale of equipment, technologies and services in Iran's energy sector. The oil processing industry is among these measures. New investments in Iran's energy sector as a whole were also banned. The production capacity of the country is decreasing. Iran cannot effectively increase production due to the lack of investments.
Several European banks refuse to open a credit line for Iranian citizens, so, they have to pay in cash. Moreover, the sale of certain goods to Iran was banned.