Iran’s Zarif says no links between INSTEX, FATF

A spokesman for the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iran’s Parliament said the foreign minister at a meeting of the Committee called INSTEX th

On Jan. 31, three European countries – France, Germany and the UK (shortened as E3) – officially announced the creation of the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), a special purpose vehicle, to allow them to bypass US sanctions on trade with Iran. INSTEX facilitates non-dollar trade with Iran, allowing European companies to trade with the Islamic Republic without being hit by the sanctions.

In their statement announcing the move, the European powers said the mechanism will function under international standards of anti-money laundering, combating the financing of terrorism, so they expect Iran to “swiftly implement all elements of its FATF action plan.”

A meeting of the Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee was held today with the presence of Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to discuss INSTEX, Trend reports citing ISNA.

“At the meeting, the foreign minister briefed the MPs on the financial mechanism between Iran and Europe and stressed that this mechanism was a positive and initial step by the EU to maintain the interests of Iran,” Spokesman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iran’s Parliament Ali Najafi said.

“At the meeting, the foreign minister, while denying the links between FATF and INSTEX, said ‘we did not accept this precondition’, and even objected that the delayed European action in providing this mechanism cannot have conditions,” Najafi added.

News.Az

News.Az