Ali Nikzad, deputy speaker of parliament, said the United States can “never” reduce Iran’s oil exports to zero, adding that Washington intended to put the Islamic Republic’s economy under pressure by gaining control of the Strait of Hormuz.

In remarks published by IRNA, Nikzad said: “The Strait of Hormuz belongs to Iran and you can’t do anything; you can never reduce our export oil to zero.”

He said the “enemy” intended to first gain control of the Strait of Hormuz and then the Bab el-Mandeb, and to take control of about 60% of the world’s oil, which is located in Iran, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.

Nikzad also said that the enemies had planned to destroy the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program and its missile capability and to eliminate the “Axis of Resistance” in the region, but they “had not recognized the people of Iran’s beliefs.”