TEHRAN, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- Venezuela has joined a small group of exporters willing to defy Western pressure by exporting thousands of barrels of gasoline to Iran, officials say.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez paid an official visit to Tehran during the weekend to meet his Iranian counterpart, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The two leaders signed an agreement for the Venezuelan export of 20,000 barrels of gasoline to Iran each day beginning in October, state-funded broadcaster Press TV reports.
Despite sitting on some of the largest gas reserves in the world, Iran is only able to meet barely half of its gasoline demands.
Tehran in June 2008 implemented a gasoline rationing system and in May called for restrictions on personal vehicle usage in what it said was an effort to alleviate traffic congestion.
Russian oil giant LUKoil and oil trader Vitol are among the companies willing to export gasoline to Iran despite Western pressures.
A bipartisan measure before U.S. lawmakers would target those companies that export petroleum products to Iran as a punitive measure to punish Tehran for its controversial nuclear program.
