German Foreign Minister: The Cancellation of Mahan's License Was Necessary, Approach to 'JCPOA' Has Not Changed

The German Foreign Minister stated that the cancellation of Mahan Airlines' license was "necessary from a security standpoint"; he emphasized that his country's approach to the nuclear agreement with Iran has not changed and that Berlin remains supportive of the JCPOA. Germany revoked Mahan Airlines' license on January 21. A senior German government official told Reuters that this action was taken "both due to security issues" and "due to doubts regarding the use of this Iranian airline for military purposes." This action has been welcomed and supported by the United States. Mahan Airlines has yet to respond to the cancellation of its license, and Iranian officials have also not commented on the matter. According to the German news agency, Heiko Maas, the German Foreign Minister, stated in Brussels that the cancellation of Mahan's license does not affect support for the nuclear agreement with Iran, which remains of special importance to his country. However, Maas added that "this was a necessary decision, as Germany's security was at stake." He did not provide specific details regarding the security issues and stated that his country would respond appropriately to "case-by-case developments," including support for terrorism and sabotage. The cancellation of Mahan's license occurred just days after the arrest of an individual named "Abdulhamid," a translator and cultural advisor working in the German army, on suspicion of espionage for Iran. The arrested individual, who is of Afghan descent, was described by the German federal prosecutor as a "language expert and cultural advisor in the German armed forces and may have provided information to an Iranian intelligence service." The Iranian Foreign Ministry has denied these allegations, stating that the arrested individual has no connection to Iran and that the reports about him aim to "damage Iran-Europe relations." In recent days, various reports from European countries have emerged regarding certain actions against the Islamic Republic; Denmark accused the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence on October 30 of intending to assassinate members of the "Ahvaz Movement" on Danish soil, and then the Danish Foreign Minister announced an agreement in the European Union to impose sanctions against one of Iran's intelligence agencies. The Netherlands also announced on January 8 that the Islamic Republic was involved in planning two attacks in that country. The cancellation of Mahan's license has been welcomed by the United States. Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, has urged U.S. allies to follow Berlin's action. The U.S. ambassador in Berlin also told the German news agency that this action by Germany "demonstrates commendable leadership." Mahan Airlines was established in 1992 in Kerman. In 2011, the U.S. added this company to its sanctions list for "providing services to the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps." At that time, the U.S. Treasury Department stated that "Mahan Air's close cooperation with the Quds Force for transporting weapons, personnel, and financial assistance through its flights represents another face of the IRGC's extensive efforts to infiltrate Iran's commercial sector to facilitate its support for terrorism." U.S. sanctions against Mahan Airlines, intermediaries, and several other individuals associated with it continued after the initial sanctions. The Islamic Republic has denied the allegations against Mahan Air regarding the transfer of weapons and personnel. In 2016, Iran's representation at the United Nations described the allegation of using this airline to send weapons to countries like Lebanon as "absurd and entirely false."