Foreign Ministers of France, Germany and United Kingdom on Thursday said they had launched a mechanism for trade with Iran and help domestic companies continue doing business with Tehran in spite of Washington sanctions.
In a joint statement released by France's Foreign Ministry, French foreign minister Jean Yves Le Drian and his German and British counterparts Heiko Maas and Jeremy Hunt, announced the creation of INSTEX SAS (Instrument In Support Of Trade Exchanges), "a special Purpose Vehicle aimed to facilitate legitimate trade between European economic actors and Iran.
The new mechanism would back European business transactions with Iran, with a major focus on the "most essential sectors to the Iranian population, such as pharmaceuticals, medical devices and agri-food products," they added.
The three European powers stressed that the system "will function under the highest international standards with regards to anti-money laundering, combating the financing of terrorism and EU and UN sanctions compliance."
In order to become operational, more work was needed on concrete details to define the way the company will operate, and on an effective and transparent corresponding entity required to be able to operationalize INSTEX, they added.
By launching the new trade system, the three European countries reiterated "their resolute commitment and continued efforts to preserve the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)", also known as Iran nuclear deal despite U.S. withdrawal.
They also "reaffirm that their efforts to preserve the economic provisions of the JCPOA are conditioned upon Iran's full implementation of its nuclear-related commitments, including full and timely cooperation with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)."
The 2015 deal eased sanctions on Iran in exchange for Tehran limiting its nuclear program.
