Last week, five Iranian tankers carrying fuel and oil refinery equipment arrived in Venezuela amid US warnings of fresh sanctions on both Tehran and Caracas.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi has signaled Tehran’s readiness to go ahead with its oil shipments to Venezuela if Caracas needs more such supplies.

The statement comes after five Iranian tankers carrying fuel and oil refinery equipment arrived in Venezuela last week.

The deliveries took place in the face of US warnings of fresh sanctions on both Tehran and Caracas, which was preceded by White House officials stating that there were no operations planned to stop Iranian tankers which were en route to Venezuela.

Before the tankers’ arrival in the South American country, The Wall Street Journal cited unnamed US officials as saying that the Trump administration is considering new sanctions and "other legal steps to disrupt Iranian oil exports to Venezuela", in response to what Washington sees as Tehran's attempts "to make inroads into Latin America".