The United States will grant temporary waivers for Iranian oil purchases to eight countries, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters on Friday.

Sanctions on Iran’s petroleum sector are scheduled to snap back into effect on November 5.

Pompeo said the exceptions were temporary and allotted to countries that had made progress toward cutting their dependence on Iranian supplies.

The top US diplomat did not name the countries granted waivers, but Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Dönmez announced Friday that Turkey had secured an exception through negotiations with US officials.

“We always stated that such sanctions could negatively impact peace, stability and economies in neighboring countries like Turkey, and we elaborated this reality during the talks with US officials,” he said in comments published by states news agency Anadolu.

Ankara relies on the Islamic Republic for nearly half of its oil needs.

The US sanctions on Iran’s petroleum sector are scheduled to go into effect Monday. Secretary Pompeo has promised “maximum pressure” on Tehran in the weeks and months ahead.

Source: atimes