Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad resigned Sunday amid mounting economic pressure on Tehran as Washington tightens sanctions and restricts the country’s oil exports.
What happened: Paknejad, who has held the position since August 2024, submitted his resignation some time ago, but President Masoud Pezeshkian accepted it only on Sunday, Seyyed Mehdi Tabatabaei, deputy director of communications and information at the president’s office, told Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency.
Tabatabaei said Paknejad had requested his resignation “due to personal reasons.”
Later Sunday, Pezeshkian issued a decree appointing Hamid Bovard, managing director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), as caretaker oil minister.