Iran rejects news on Europe conditions for SPV implementation

Tehran, Dec 31, IRNA – Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi strongly rejected certain news that Europe has proposed conditions for implementation of SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle for trade). According to the Foreign Ministry website on Monday, he said certain news claiming that the European Union (EU) together with three European countries have put forward conditions in this regard is basically baseless. Noting that Europeans have always maintained their long-standing cooperation with Iran, Qasemi said that they are well aware of Iran's manners and characteristics. Iran is a well-known country in the world and enjoys its specific position which are defined by special elements so every single country in the world knows that no one could ever set conditions for Iran, he added. Elaborating on Europe's conidtions for launcing the special financial channel with Iran, he said SPV problems are due to Europe's inability to face the US pressures and also the complex nature of the scheme. He went on to stress that such a scheme is basically very complicated and time-consuming to implement regardless of which countries are devising it. Commenting on EU's delay in launching SPV with Iran, Qasemi said although Tehran still hopes that Europe will comply with its commitments, it has pursued other options with countries like China, Russia, India and Turkey. This does not mean that Iran has necessarily followed a certain channel or mechanism but that it has taken various measures, he noted. However, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman went on stress that though Europe has not been able to present its SPV in the due time, Iran hopes to get it implemented. Iranian officials are interested in holding talks on political fields but they will not intertwine country's fate with these issues, Qasemi reiterated. We feel that Europe is to a great extent incapable of confronting US pressures and cannot defend European identity and financial institutions,' he said. Outlining the procedure of SPV formation, Qasemi noted that it was first proposed by some world countries especially Europeans who were interested in sustaining their economic gains from the nuclear deal also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) after the US withdrawal from the JCPOA. Europeans started negotiations with Iran to safeguard their economic benefits from the JCPOA; he said, adding Iran, having noticed the determination of the EU+3, decided to pursue talks in different political levels. 'We assumed that due to US pressures, setting up a financial mechanism would be difficult,' Qasemi noted and stressed that now in addition to companies and financial institutions, Washington is now threatening the SPV itself now. The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman further regretted that SPV has not yet been presented due to US unlimited pressures. SPV, also known as special purpose vehicle, is a financial mechanism that the European Union has proposed to facilitate trade with Iran. The EU Foreign Policy chief Federica Mogherini has recently said that it been finalized and is expected to come into force before yearend. It is regarded as a special purpose vehicle, a system which is viewed as a mechanism for EU members to keep doing business with Iran despite the US sanctions on Tehran. The European foreign ministers are unanimous that the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran has to be saved, Mogherini said. US President Donald Trump backed out from a hard-won multilateral nuclear deal with Iran in May arguing the accord did too little to curb Iran’s nuclear program. He imposed two rounds of sanctions on Iran, the second of which came into force on Nov 5. Other signatories to the deal – the UK, France, Germany, China and Russia – opposed Washington’s move saying they will do their best to save the deal. Trump’s withdrawal from Iran nuclear deal took place while the UN Atomic watchdog, in repeated reports, has confirmed Iran’s commitment to the deal. Follow us on Twitter @IrnaEnglish