Korea is considering bringing down its dependence on Iran for oil imports to the 2010 level in response to new U.S. sanctions on the Islamic country over its alleged nuclear weapons program, a government source here said Sunday.

The proportion of South Korea‘s aggregate petroleum imports from Iran rose to 9.7 percent in 2011 from 8.3 percent in 2010.

“Unlike other countries, our country’s oil imports from Iran increased over the past year. It won‘t be difficult to return the volume back to the level of the previous year,” said the government source in Seoul.

He said South Korea can attain the reduction target, if finalized, through voluntary efforts by private oil importers to look for alternative import sources.

U.S. President Barack Obama recently signed into law a bill that imposes tough sanctions against financial institutions dealing with Iran’s central bank. The Islamic state has been under growing international pressure over its alleged nuclear weapons program, leading South Korea to also announce new economic sanctions against the country last month.

The latest remark by a Seoul official came after Yonhap News Agency reported last week that Seoul plans to ask Washington for an exemption from the sanctions that could hurt its imports of crude oil from Iran. The government is currently preparing to send an official delegation to Washington for consultations on the issue, according to the report.

Regarding the alternative import sources, industry watchers point to United Arab Emirates as one of them, noting the Middle East country‘s share of South Korea’s oil imports fell from 12.1 percent to 9.6 percent in the 2010-2011 period. (Yonhap News)