TEHRAN, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Petroleum Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh on Wednesday denied that Russia sells Iran's crude oil in the international market in the face of U.S. sanctions on Iran's energy exports.

"I deny the news aired recently by some western media in this regard," Zanganeh told reporters here in Tehran after the cabinet meeting.

He refrained from answering the question concerning the impact of U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil exports.

"I do not speak about the oil sales and the (impending U.S.) sanctions," he stressed.

Iranian officials have reiterated that the United States would not be able to stop Iran's crude sales.

The U.S. State Department has set Nov. 4 as the deadline for international oil buyers to stop all their oil purchases from Iran. Otherwise they will face U.S. punishments.