Iranian Parliament Speaker Urges Citizens to Conserve Fuel Following US Blockade

The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament has called on citizens to reduce their fuel consumption. This appeal was made on Tuesday (1/9) local time, as the country faces difficulties importing fuel to meet demand due to a naval blockade by the United States.

“Of course, part of the responsibility for this high consumption does not lie with our people; rather, it lies with our industries,” said the Speaker and Iran’s chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, in a televised speech, as reported by AFP on Wednesday (2/9/2026).

“However, in any case, it is clear that we need to conserve petrol in our usage,” he added.

Ghalibaf stated that fuel conservation “requires collective wisdom and, of course, requires the cooperation of the people.”

“If we use it correctly, we can manage with the amount of petrol that we produce in this country,” he said.

Washington imposed a blockade on Iranian ports in retaliation for Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz is a vital route for the shipment of oil and gas from the Gulf.

The US government also recently announced extensive new sanctions aimed at further isolating the Iranian economy.

In recent days, long queues of vehicles have been observed at numerous petrol stations in Tehran, the capital of Iran.

Last week, Iran’s Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah admitted that domestic petrol production “is insufficient, and due to the US naval blockade, we are unable to import it.”

A few days earlier, the Iranian President’s Chief of Staff stated that petrol quotas would be reviewed.

With many Iranian citizens feeling the impact of soaring inflation and a bleak economic outlook exacerbated by war, Ghalibaf also announced plans to expand subsidies.

“The government and parliament are determined to increase credit allocations for electronic food subsidy programmes, especially for income groups bearing the greatest economic pressure,” he said.

Ghalibaf emphasised that the welfare of the population is a priority.

“In fact, all our efforts as officials must be directed towards reducing the pressure on the people so that dissatisfaction decreases, because the satisfaction of the people is a fundamental principle for us,” he concluded.