France, Germany likely to host Europe-Iran payment channel

TEHRAN (defapress) – Either France or Germany might become the host nation for the European clearing house, usually referred to as a Special Vehicle Purpose (SPV) — a payment mechanism that would allow European companies to bypass US-imposed sanctions on Iran.

News ID: 73966

Date: 27 November 2018 - 12:14

The report was released on Monday, during the visit of Iran’s nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi to Brussels, Belgium, where he attended the third seminar on peaceful nuclear cooperation between Tehran and the European Union.

The establishment of this mechanism is widely viewed as the moment of truth on whether the EU is genuinely ready to live up to its promise to keep the so-called Iranian nuclear deal.

According to the diplomats, British officials are also mulling over joining France and Germany in order to rescue the European attempt to circumvent the US sanctions and salvage the Iran nuclear deal following the US’ withdrawal in May.

According to the report, the mechanism is not finalized yet and finishing touches will be discussed on the sidelines of the 2018 G20 Buenos Aires summit, scheduled to begin on November 30.

The move comes after Luxembourg and Austria, under the US pressure, refused to host the SPV, with Luxembourg officials being warned that hosting the mechanism could damage the country’s place as a major financial center hosting many international investment funds, European diplomats said.

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