U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday announced the renewal of Iran sanctions exceptions for South Korea and eight other nations.

The nine nations will be able to continue purchasing reduced amount of Iranian crude oil for the coming 180 days without any penalties under the National Defense Authorization Act.

"The United States and the international community stand shoulder to shoulder in maintaining pressure on the Iranian regime until it fully addresses concerns about its nuclear program," Kerry said in a press statement. "That is why today I am pleased to announce that China, India, Malaysia, Republic of Korea (South Korea), Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Taiwan have again qualified for an exception to sanctions outlined in section 1245 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012, based on additional significant reductions in the volume of their crude oil purchases from Iran or for reducing those purchases to zero and remaining there."

It is the third consecutive time for the countries to be granted the exceptions, the first in June 2011 and the second in December last year.

A total of 20 countries and economies have continued to significantly reduce the volume of their crude oil purchases from Iran or have completely eliminated such purchases, according to the U.S. government.

"Today's determination is another example of the international community's strong and steady commitment to convince Iran to meet its international obligations," Kerry said. (Yonhap News)