US President Donald Trump has decided not to renew the exemption from sanctions on Iranian oil imports granted to several countries.

The aim of the decision is "to reduce the export of Iranian oil to zero, thus preventing from the Ayatollah regime its main source of income.

"The United States, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, the three largest energy producers in the world, together with our friends and allies, are committed to ensuring the world's oil markets receive all supplies, including the deficit created by the non-use of Iranian oil.

"The Trump administration and its allies are determined to continue and expand the campaign of economic pressure on Iran to put an end to the destabilizing activities of the regime, which is a threat to the United States, its partners, and its allies in the Middle East," the statement said.

The White House also noted that "the President's decision is a direct continuation of the decision to declare Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization, a further step that demonstrates US commitment to eliminate the Iranian terror network and to act to change the regime's behavior in the country."

The decision will harm several US allies, including India, Japan, and South Korea, who had been exempt from sanctions on oil trading with Iran.

Those benefiting from the decision are Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, expected to increase their oil sales substantially.