India’s union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Sunday that India will not reduce oil imports from Iran, despite US and European sanctions against the Islamic republic.

The governments in Europe and the US are urging Asian countries to reduce oil imports from Iran so as to make their sanctions more effective in order to force Tehran to come clean on its nuclear programme. Iran is suspected of covertly developing nuclear weapons, a charge it denies and maintains that it has the right to harness civilian nuclear energy for generating power.

The Iranian government expressed its willingness to resume talks with the group of six and to strengthen cooperation with the IAEA. The authorities in the Islamic republic have announced a new military exercise in the Strait of Hormuz, through which a majority of the gulf oil passes to several countries.

European countries have found a common ground and have agreed in principle to impose a ban on Iranian oil in order to show a united stance amid growing tensions with the Islamic republic’s government. Western countries have started planning for alternative fuel supplies to compensate for any disrupting that may be caused by Iran’s activity in the Gulf region.

Mukherjee said that India, which imports about 12 per cent of Iranian oil, cannot do without importing from the country. "It is not possible for India to take any decision to reduce the imports from Iran drastically, because among the countries which can provide the requirement of the emerging economies, Iran is an important country amongst them," Mukherjee said.