Easy income obtained from crude oil export is a big problem for Iran and this old problem has hit Iran's development, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said during a meeting with members of the Iranian Cabinet of Ministers.

Axar.az reports referring to Khamenei’s website.

The transformation of crude oil into various products is one of the main ways for Iran to get rid of its dependence on crude oil export.

Khamenei added that besides gas and gasoline, it is possible to produce other products in the future. Thus, the export value of these products is several times higher than that of crude oil.

Several countries have achieved great development without extracting a single drop of oil, he said.

Even during the non-sanction period, oil markets, oil prices and the volume of sold oil are controlled by the world's major consumers, i.e., Western countries, Khamenei said.

The US imposed sanctions on Iran in November 2018 and expanded its list of sanctions in several stages.