BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 8. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance of Iran sent another letter of protest to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), Trend reports.
The letter has to do with FATF not removing Iran from the documents related to the group's 7th recommendation and UN Security Council Resolution No. 2231. The 7th recommendation of the FATF is about targeted sanctions related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. In this recommendation, the countries are requested to implement certain steps towards implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions, including the freezing of the assets and funds of the specified persons without delay.
On October 18, 2015, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was approved. In line with the implementation of this plan, UN Security Council Resolution No. 2231 suspended the implementation of UN Resolutions No. 1373, 1747, 1803 and 1929 on Iran. However, restrictive measures such as the application of targeted financial sanctions were envisaged.
According to Resolution No. 2231, the provisions of this resolution on the abolition of restrictive measures can come into force in two cases - after 8 years from the approval of the JCPOA and after the announcement by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Taking into account that 8 years have passed since the approval of the JCPOA, the provisions of the resolution may come into force. On this basis, on October 19, 2023, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance of Iran applied to the FATF.
The objectives of FATF are to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory, and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.
During the recent FATF meeting, Iran was warned that it may be added to the list of non-cooperative countries within three months if it does not completely fulfill the FATF requirements. Iran fulfilled 37 of the 41 FATF requirements. The remaining four requirements refer to the legislative field.
The amendments to the Counter-Terrorist Financing Act, Anti-Money Laundering Act, Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo), and International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) were prepared by the Iranian government and sent to the parliament.
Although the four conventions have been approved and sent to the Expediency Council of Iran, the CFT and Palermo conventions have not yet been ratified by the Council.
Iran was included in the FATF blacklist in 2007. The anti-Tehran steps have been taken since 2009. Thus, the countries were cautious in their financial and banking transactions with Iran.
Taking reciprocal steps against Iran through diplomatic means has been postponed since 2016. FATF included Iran on the blacklist again on February 21, 2020.
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