Iran taking measures to implement FATF bills: Interior minister

Tehran, Oct 22, IRNA - Iran has taken measures to fully implement Financial Action Task Force (FATF) bills, said the interior minister, assuring that his country is making efforts to comply with the international rules in the next four months. “There are four months left. Some measures have been taken. In these 4 months, the government is pursuing adoption of all the four bills and two conventions related to the FATF,” said Iran’s Interior Minister Abdorreza Rahmani Fazli on Monday. “The government has already passed FATF bylaws and announced them, taking big steps. In the meantime, we are trying to make other actions as well,” he added. The FATF has conditioned taking Iran out of its blacklist on the ratification of four bills. In August 2018, Iran enacted amendments to its Counter-Terrorist Financing Act and in January 2019 amended its Anti-Money Laundering Act. But the so-called Palermo bill (International Convention Against Transnational Organized Crimes) approved by the UN General Assembly in 2000, and the CFT (Convention Against Funding Terrorism) have been passed by the Iranian Parliament but are not yet in force. The two bills have been passed by parliament, but the constitutional watchdog Guardian Council has not ratified them. The parliament sent the bills to the Expediency Council for arbitration, but the council is yet to issue a final verdict on the case. The FATF said on October 18 that countermeasures against Tehran will return if Iran fails to start implementing the International Convention Against Transnational Organized Crimes by February 2020. While acknowledging the progress that Iran has made, including with the passage of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, "The FATF decided at its meeting this week to continue the suspension of countermeasures, with the exception of the FATF calling upon members and urging all jurisdictions to require increased supervisory examination for branches and subsidiaries of financial institutions based in Iran, in line with the February 2019 Public Statement," the FATF statement said. Rahmani Fazli stressed that all the legislative and supervisory organisations as well as the government are all involved in the decision-making process about the FATF. “There is nothing to worry about as all these entities care about the Revolution and want to solve problems safely, correctly and within the realms of law,” he reassured. Follow us on Twitter @IrnaEnglish