European Union working on special payment channel for use with Iran

Federica Mogherini, EU Member responsible for foreign affairs of the European Union (EU) said the EU would remain committed to the Iran agreement the USA has withdrawn from and is working on a payment channel for use with Iran.

In an official statement following the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan (JCPOA) meeting comprising Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, China and France under the United Nations General Assembly, Mogherini added that Iran would also comply with the agreement. She said, “In order to achieve solid and immediate results, members are positive about establishing a payment channel for Iran’s export products, especially for oil”.

In May, US President Donald Trump had announced that the United States would withdraw from the Iranian nuclear agreement. In response to Trump’s move EU member states had announced they would adhere to the agreement. After the US withdrawal from the agreement, Trump began implementing various sanctions on Iran, specifically targeting the oil industry. Following the first sanctions imposed in August, before the new sanctions to be implemented in November, while the United States continues to warn allies about not doing business with Iran, it has also warned that it would impose secondary sanctions on EU member states doing business with Iran.