Iranian official: European banks do not want to cooperate

By  Trend

European banks do not want to cooperate with Iran under the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), Faryal Mostowfi, Director of the Investment Center of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture of Tehran, told Tasnim News Agency, Trend reports.

According to Mostowfi, without the cooperation of European banks, INSTEX is of no use. He reminded that this mechanism was developed to transport food products, medicines and humanitarian supplies to Iran.

"Sanctions have left no options for European banks' trading with Iran. On the other hand, we have been informed that the Europeans are trying to convince banks or financial institutions to cooperate with Iran under INSTEX," he said.

The US announced its withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in May 2018. Three European signatories of the agreement - France, Germany and the UK (shortened as E3) - officially announced the creation of INSTEX, a special purpose vehicle, to allow them bypass US sanctions in the 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 recent days, a special mechanism, known in Persian as SATMA, was introduced in Iran for trade and finance operations between Iran and Europe. However, the Iranian side is still worried by INSTEX not operating properly.

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