Iran says erasing sanctions would provide global benefits

Removing sanctions on Iran will benefit the regional and global economies, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday from Tehran.

Rouhani addressed delegates gathered for an economic forum in the Iranian capital. He said sanctions pressure has eased in coordination with multilateral negotiations over Iran's controversial nuclear program.

Iran under the terms of a multilateral agreement reached in November can export around 1 million barrels of oil in exchange for curbing nuclear research activity. Rouhani said moving forward with nuclear talks with the United States, China, Russia, Britain and France, plus Germany, should bring benefits to the international community.

"Western and eastern countries are telling us the sanctions have harmed them and their removal will benefit all," he said.

The Iranian Oil Ministry said Tuesday its oil sales for the first four months of the year were up 5 percent when compared with last year. The government provided no data in terms of volume, though Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said increases were expected in the coming years.

Iranian exports in 2011 were listed at around 2.2 million bpd.