US Representative on Iran: We Are Vigilant Against Evasion of Sanctions

The US Special Representative for Iran states that when foreign companies engage in trade with the Iranian government, they are likely financing terrorism, possibly even terrorism on their own soil. Brian Hook's recent remarks were reflected on the Persian Twitter account of the US State Department on November 19. Hook stated, "We are vigilant against any evasion of sanctions, and if we observe such actions, we will not hesitate to use sanctions to stop it." According to the US Special Representative, the purpose of their sanctions is to prevent the regime's ability to export terrorism. The United States has placed the Iranian government at the top of its list of state sponsors of terrorism. The Trump administration withdrew from the nuclear agreement made during Barack Obama's presidency last spring. While both during Obama's and the current administration, the Iranian government has been on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, Trump claims that the nuclear agreement did not prevent such activities, the development of missile programs, destabilizing actions by Tehran in the region, and other issues. Barack Obama states that the goal of the nuclear agreement was Iran's nuclear programs. Tehran denies supporting terrorism while simultaneously describing some of the United States' key allies in the region as the creators and supporters of terrorist groups. The Islamic Republic has rejected interference in other countries' affairs and asserts that its missile program is defensive and that it does not intend to abandon it. On Monday, Hook emphasized in an interview with Al Arabiya that "Iran has evaded sanctions in the past, but this time we are pursuing a much tougher approach." These statements reiterate the remarks of American officials in recent weeks, stating that the current campaign is to exert "maximum pressure" on Iran to change its behavior and return to the negotiating table for a more comprehensive agreement. Meanwhile, the European Union, which has remained committed to the nuclear agreement with Iran, is trying to create a financial mechanism that can continue trade with Iran. This mechanism, known as SPV, utilizes an intermediary entity in the European Union for trade with Iran and is supposed to ensure that, for example, the money from Iran's oil exports to European countries is compensated by the sale of goods and services from Europe to Iran. However, it seems these efforts have not made much progress. Recently, some informed sources in the European Union told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that none of the 28 member countries are willing to host this special mechanism. On Monday, Abbas Araghchi, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, announced that due to "very heavy pressure" from the US, no country has yet agreed to host the financial mechanism between Iran and Europe, and the EU is "unable" to officially register this mechanism. The US sanctions, after exiting the JCPOA, have been reinstated in two rounds, with the latest round including severe oil and financial sanctions. The US claims it ultimately intends to reduce Iran's oil sales to zero. However, leaders of the Islamic Republic, including Hassan Rouhani, state that Iran will continue to export oil.