BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 1
Trend:
The Iranian government is concerned over the fate of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) related bills at the Expediency Council, said Iranian Government Spokesman.
"The CFT and Palermo bills are to be reviewed by the Expediency Council, I believe the following issue is important and related to national interest so it should not be judged based on political issues between parties," said Ali Rabiei, Trend reports citing Mehr News Agency.
"Foreign policy and interaction with the world would affect all domestic and economic issues. Sanction and Iran being blacklisted by the FATF are two major issues. The effect of these two issues is beyond foreign policy and we clearly have seen their effect on the economy. The government's strategy in recent years was to break sanctions and create constructive relations with the world," he added.
"The Governor of Central Bank of Iran has indicated the issue of FATF blacklist had its effect and the effect would be more visible in the post-sanction era. The reports indicate that even our neighbors and economic partners do not intend to have clear cooperation due to the effects of Iran being blacklisted by the FATF and Iran should have pay more cost for trade. Approving the FATF-related bills would reduce obstacles and would help the country's import and export," he noted.
"Any decision over the FATF would have a long effect on the next government. All the countries in the world have joined the global convention and we should believe that accession to the convention would provide national security and interest to the country. Iran does not deserve to be blacklisted," Rabiei stated.
In February 2020, the global anti-money laundering watchdog (FATF) lifted the suspension of counter-measures on Iran and called on its members and all jurisdictions to apply effective counter-measures against the country.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei approved a government request to extend the deadline for discussions on the two remaining bills mandated by the global anti-money laundering body in December 2020.
