TEHRAN, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian minister of petroleum said on Friday the oil sector's constant growth over the past years proves that U.S. sanctions have failed.

       Javad Owji addressed the opening ceremony of the 26th International Oil, Gas, Refining and Petrochemical Exhibition of Iran, dubbed Iran Oil Show, adding the oil industry is at the forefront of the fight against U.S. sanctions, according to the Iranian oil ministry's SHANA news agency.

       The sector's growing capacity shows that the sanctions have not been able to stop the Iranian oil industry's development, he stressed.

       Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's administration has managed to increase crude exports despite the sanctions, he noted.

       Owji added Iran will begin the implementation of 25 giant oil sector projects.

       With the theme "Knowledge-Based Oil, Iranian Production, Global Exports," the expo has attracted participants both from Iran and abroad, including Italy, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, South Korea, Switzerland, Germany, Ukraine, South Africa, and Belgium.

       In May 2018, former U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of a 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and reimposed Washington's unilateral sanctions on Tehran.