Is E3 serious about a deal with Iran?

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Sep 12, 2022

London, IRNA -- The three European participants of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal known as the E3 or the European Troika have shown a behavior since the implementation of the deal until their recent unconstructive joint statement, which begs the question about the seriousness of the E3 on a final deal as independent parties involved in the talks to revive the 2015 deal.

Britain, France and Germany have failed to play an effective role in implement their commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) since it was signed between Iran and six world powers in 2015.

The JCPOA was originally meant to remove international and unilateral sanctions against Iran and guarantee its economic benefit in return of limitations over its nuclear program.

As a result of following the US sanctions policy and the Zionist regime's lobbying activities, anti-Iranian precedents have been so entrenched in Europe's economic and financial institutions that the E3 very soon begin to despair of ever being able to implement its JCPOA-related commitments.

In a letter to the then Prime Minister David Cameroon who had criticized the bank's refusal to carry out an Iran-related transaction months after the JCPOA was signed, the CEO of the British bank Barclays said that financial institutions in this country were doubtful about how to treat Iran due to US primary sanctions and they had limited direct connections with Iranian individuals and entities, therefore.

The backbone of US sanctions against Iran is the 2011 congress-passed act which prohibits American banks from doing Iran-related financial transactions. The prohibitions affects all banking operations denominated in the US dollar and that's why European banks were reluctant to do business with Iranian institutions even after the JCPOA was signed and sanctions against Iran were removed.

The European Troika kept advising Iran not to exit the nuclear deal after the US did so, promising to compensate for the US' breach of covenant. They clearly promised to do so during a meeting of the Joint Commission of the JCPOA two months after the US' pullout.

They made 11 commitments in the joint statement issued in July 2018, including ensuring the continuation of Iran's oil exports, improving extensive economic ties with Iran in different areas, continuing transportation ties, encouraging investment in Iran, and most importantly protecting European businesses against extraterritorial impacts of the US sanctions.

However, Europeans proved incompetent at doing their obligations and even the two special mechanisms, namely the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) and Instrument for Supporting Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), they devised as a secure financial channel for Iran-related financial transactions were dead on arrival.

Comments made by officials of the three European countries shed light on the fact that their behavior and measures until the former US President Donald Trump's departure were only a diplomatic gesture regarding the deal they delicately evaded implementing it.

However, they conformed to the White House's positions as expected. Washington's green light to hold the talks for a possible US' return to the JCPOA was enough for the Troika to close their eyes to the US' illegal actions and start to blame Iran for the impasse in implement the JCPOA.

Iran made it clear that its intention of participating in the talks was to effectively and verifiably remove sanctions against Iran and discuss ways the US could compensate for the damages imposed on Iran due to the resumption of sanctions.

The talks have now reached a point where the effective removal of sanctions and a final deal depend on Washington's decision. And the three European counties have shown that they have linked their stances to that of the US, as they participated in the last round of talks in Vienna at a lower level.

The recent joint statement which was described as being unmeasured, incorrect and untimely begs the question of how serious the E3 were on reaching a deal with Iran.

In that statement, the E3 baselessly claimed that Iran has failed to seize the diplomatic opportunity to resume the JCPOA implementation and has continued to expand its nuclear activities "beyond any plausible civilian justification."

Iran advised the three countries to be more active to find a solution to solve disagreements, instead of issuing unconstructive statements which are not constituent with goodwill.

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