Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 15
By Khalid Kazimov – Trend:
Despite a recent bill by the US House of Representatives on blocking aircraft sales to the Islamic Republic, an Iranian aviation official believes the country’s aircraft purchase deals with the giant producers are still valid.
Maqsud Asadi-Samani, the secretary of Association of Iranian Airlines, has said the aircraft manufacturers have not reacted to the bill so far, IRNA news agency reported.
He also said the bill still needs to be approved by the Congress and President Donald Trump.
He added that decision makers in the US should think of the economic benefits of such deals.
While Iran expects to receive two ATR airplanes in the coming days, the US House of Representatives has voted in favor of new measures that block sales of commercial aircraft to Iran.
The bill prevents the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) from clearing licenses to allow aircraft sales to Iran.
Following the implementation of the nuclear deal last January and the removal of sanctions on Iran, the country launched talks with leading airplane manufacturers to purchase hundreds of commercial aircraft from Airbus, Boeing and others. The leading manufacturers require OFAC licenses to complete the sales.