U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that the United States intends to enforce the re-imposed sanctions lifted under the Iran nuke deal with "great rigor" against any party violating them.
The remarks came after European nations expressed their continued support for the historic deal and confirmation of Iran's implementation of its nuclear-related commitments under the deal soon after a UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting on Iran held on the same day.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said earlier this month that Europe will finalize a cooperation mechanism for facilitating mutual financial transactions "soon" to avoid the U.S. banking sanctions on Iran. The special purpose vehicle (SPV), designed to allow European companies to bypass the U.S. sanctions, was due to be set up by the EU within the next few months.
In response, Pompeo said at the UN press conference that "we have to evaluate the facts as they present themselves."
"There are humanitarian exemptions in the sanctions that have been put in place for foodstuffs and medicine. If the activity that is undertaken is consistent with that, we obviously won't emplace sanctions," he said.
"But to the extent that there are violations of our sanctions, we intend to enforce them with great rigor against any party who is a participant in those violations," the U.S. top diplomat added.
During the UNSC meeting, Pompeo urged the Council to maintain an arms embargo on Iran scheduled to be lifted in 2020 under the Iran nuke deal, and to "establish inspection and interdiction measures, in ports and on the high seas, to thwart Iran's continuing efforts to circumvent the existing arms restrictions."
After leaving the Iran nuke deal in May, the U.S. government has re-imposed sanctions on Iran's key economic sectors. Foreign companies keeping business connections with Iran in these areas would risk U.S. secondary sanctions.
European nations have tried to save the deal and protect its companies from U.S. punishments. The EU foreign and security policy chief Federica Mogherini said in September that the EU will set up a legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Iran in light of the U.S. re-imposition of sanctions.
Pompeo later responded that he "was disturbed and, indeed, deeply disappointed" to hear Mogherini's remarks, noting the EU's plan was unacceptable and represented "one of the most counterproductive measures imaginable."
For its part, Tehran said that the U.S. side is unreliable, and it will not talk with Washington.
