Kharrazi: The Failure of Europe's Special Mechanism Does Not Mean We Will Exit the JCPOA

While Iran's Foreign Minister had previously threatened that if the European special mechanism does not work, Iran might exit the JCPOA, the head of Iran's Strategic Council on Foreign Relations said on Wednesday that if this mechanism fails, "it does not mean we will exit the JCPOA." The European Union's mechanism, known as the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), is intended to alleviate Iran's banking problems caused by U.S. sanctions. The SPV could ensure, for example, that the money from Iran's oil exports to European countries is compensated by the sale of goods and services from Europe to Iran. Iranian officials have long been waiting for the implementation of this EU mechanism, and previously, in October, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, even threatened that "if the special mechanism created by the Europeans is not effective," Iran would likely exit the JCPOA. However, Kamal Kharrazi, the head of Iran's Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, stated in an interview with ISNA that in response to the question of what decision Iran would make if the financial mechanism by the Europeans does not succeed, he said: "We must continue our work." He then emphasized that "no, this does not mean we will exit the JCPOA" when asked if this situation would lead to Iran exiting the agreement. He added, however, that in such a case, it depends on the decisions of the country's senior officials regarding what Iran would do in specific circumstances where the Europeans completely violate their commitments. Kharrazi further stated: "Currently, according to the latest discussions, they promised that this mechanism would be implemented by the end of this year; therefore, we must wait and see how much they will actually implement it." Kharrazi had also warned European countries a day earlier that if they do not fulfill their commitments regarding the JCPOA, they themselves would be "harmed." Meanwhile, Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, also announced that the special financial mechanism for non-dollar trade with Iran would be ready by the end of this year. The U.S., which has described this plan as a European mistake regarding Iran, is working to prevent the SPV from being implemented. One aspect of this U.S. effort relates to preventing the hosting of the special mechanism by EU countries. Iranian officials cite U.S. threats as the main reason for some countries, including Austria and Luxembourg, refusing to host the office of this special financial mechanism. In this context, on Wednesday, Morteza Safari Natanz, the head of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, stated that European countries have a new proposal for the SPV to be established in a judicial entity in one of the European countries "so that the Americans cannot interfere." The existence of such a proposal has not yet been confirmed by the EU and has not been reflected in international media.