Iran and Extension of Deadline for Approval of Anti-Money Laundering Bills

The decision by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to extend Iran's deadline for the approval of bills aimed at strengthening the fight against money laundering indicates that the opposing side does not want to create a deadlock. This was part of the statement by Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, on Saturday, one day after the FATF suspended Iran from the blacklist. The FATF is an international body overseeing financial transparency in banking transactions and preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. The group has given the Islamic Republic of Iran four opportunities to elevate Tehran's anti-money laundering mechanisms to global standards through legislative approval. Two out of the four bills presented by Hassan Rouhani's government to the parliament have been finally approved. However, the other two bills, known as the 'Palermo' and 'CFT' bills, have not been approved due to serious opposition from conservatives in the Expediency Discernment Council, the body that is supposed to decide the fate of the bills. These two bills call for Iran's accession to two conventions: 'Combating Transnational Organized Crime' and 'Countering the Financing of Terrorism.' Nevertheless, the debates and struggles continue. Despite this, the Central Bank of Iran expresses hope that these two bills will also be approved. Where is the bottleneck in the approval of Palermo and CFT? What is the outlook for the final decision on these two bills? These are the main questions of this week's program from three guests: Hamid Zangeneh, an economics professor at Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania, Mehdi Mahdavi Azad, a political analyst in Bonn, and Ehsan Mehrabi, a former parliamentary reporter in Berlin. The results of the extension of Iran's deadline for the approval of FATF bills from the perspective of Hamid Zangeneh, Mehdi Mahdavi Azad, and Ehsan Mehrabi are discussed. Why is work in Iran stuck? What is the problem? Why have the bills not been approved after a year? What are the main concerns of the opponents of the JCPOA in the Iranian government and what are their plans? What is the impact of Sadegh Larijani's presidency on the Expediency Discernment Council regarding the outcome of these bills? Why was Iran's deadline extended again? What is likely to happen at the next meeting? What would be the result of Iran returning to the blacklist? Should the renewed extension of Iran's deadline be seen as a political message? The Kayhan newspaper claims that Europe and the US have divided roles in this matter and are pursuing a common goal in the framework of good cop and bad cop. Is Kayhan's interpretation correct? Some observers criticize the government for not having a serious reaction regarding the approval of these bills. Is this true? If so, why? And if not, why do some government supporters raise this criticism? What impact will the approval of FATF bills have on the European financial channel? Will it affect the JCPOA? What is the strategy of the opponents of the approval of the FATF-related bills in countering US sanctions? Since they do not negotiate with the US, do not give concessions to Europe, and refuse Russia and China's insistence on the approval of FATF bills, what exactly do they want to do and what elements are they counting on? Do they even have a plan? What is the reason for the conservatives' pressure to oppose these bills, despite Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, stating that he has no objection to their approval? Are there signs of disagreement within this faction? Or do they think and act uniformly regarding these bills?