Parliament Approves Iran's Accession to the 'Convention on Combating the Financing of Terrorism'

The Islamic Consultative Assembly has finally approved the bill for 'Iran's accession to the Convention on Combating the Financing of Terrorism' after four months. Representatives voted in favor of this bill despite months of opposition from conservatives, and widespread protests were taking place outside the parliament building during the voting on Sunday (October 7). The bill, known as 'CFT', is one of four bills whose approval and implementation will prevent Iran from being placed on the blacklist of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). There are now less than 10 days left for Iran to implement 41 recommendations for transparency in financial and banking transactions as required by the FATF. Opponents of the bill had previously threatened to leave the parliament in a coordinated manner, a tactic known as obstructionism, to prevent the bill from being discussed and approved. According to ISNA, the session of the Islamic Consultative Assembly was tense from the beginning, culminating in one member of the Velayati faction tearing up the regulations. The Supreme Leader's opposition to this bill had led to its suspension since June, but as announced by Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Parliament, the office of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei responded to a letter from the Speaker regarding the four bills, stating that he does not oppose their discussion in parliament. The state-run news agency IRNA reported that after 'hours of discussion', the bill was finally approved with 143 votes in favor, 120 against, and five abstentions out of 271 representatives present. The bill includes a preamble, 28 articles, and an appendix, accepting Iran's accession to the international convention against the financing of terrorism with conditions, including emphasizing the regime's position of 'not recognizing Israel'. Supporters of Iran's accession to this treaty believe it will lead to greater transparency and a reduction in corruption. They argue that even if the European Union is determined to find a way to continue financial and banking transactions with Iran, nothing can be done without this measure. According to IRNA, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, stated in parliament on Sunday: 'Three days ago, the head of the Central Bank of Russia told Mr. Hemmati that we cannot work with you without FATF, and the Chinese have said the same. These two countries, which are our strategic partners, do not have colonial intentions.' He defended the approval of the bill by saying, 'I emphasize once again that neither I nor the President can guarantee that joining the anti-terrorism financing bill will solve our problems. However, we can guarantee that by not joining this bill, the U.S. will find an important excuse to increase our problems.' Proponents of Iran's accession to this treaty consider Syria and Lebanon among the countries that have joined FATF and deem the opponents' concerns in this area unrealistic. On the other hand, Mohammad Ali Mohammadi Kermani, the temporary Friday prayer leader of Tehran, recently stated about the CFT bill: 'This is a dangerous thing... and it will prevent us from helping Hezbollah, Ansar Allah, and others if we want to.' The four bills that Hassan Rouhani's government has presented to parliament to remove Iran from the FATF blacklist include the bill for Iran's accession to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo), amendments to the anti-money laundering law, amendments to the anti-terrorism financing law, and Iran's accession to the Convention on Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT). The Guardian Council: It is too early to announce an opinion regarding the CFT. According to ISNA, Abbas Ali Kadkhodai, the spokesman for the Guardian Council, reacted to the approval of the CFT accession bill by saying, 'It is too early to announce an opinion regarding the CFT.' He added, 'The parliament has approved it, but it has not yet come to us. It must first be sent to the Guardian Council so that we can announce our opinion, God willing.'