Zarif's Request to the U.S. for 'Increased Activity' to Mitigate Sanctions Impact

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, emphasized that the United States must play a 'much more active role' in addressing the 'psychological impacts' of international sanctions against Iran. During a joint press conference on Tuesday, June 15, with Federica Mogherini, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Borge Brende, his Norwegian counterpart, Zarif stated that the 'psychological impacts' of the sanctions against Iran 'still exist.' According to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), Zarif stressed that 'the U.S. has lifted the sanctions, but the psychological impacts from years of imposing these sanctions still remain, and I believe the U.S. should play a much more active role.' Various officials of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly pointed out in recent months that despite the lifting of sanctions against Iran following the nuclear agreement, they have not been able to fully benefit from the economic advantages of this situation. The inability to access the U.S. dollar as the primary international currency and difficulties in financial transactions with global banks have been cited as the main reasons for this issue. Additionally, U.S. non-nuclear sanctions against Iran related to accusations of 'supporting terrorism and money laundering' remain in place. Zarif's remarks come as both the U.S. government and other world powers have repeatedly urged major global banks in recent months to establish legal cooperation with Iran. Nevertheless, the Iranian Foreign Minister also emphasized in Norway that 'we must see the promises fulfilled in practice, and especially the Iranian people must see the impacts of the lifting of sanctions.' According to Reuters, Mogherini also stated during the Tuesday meeting that the EU is in discussions with traders and banks to encourage them to engage more with Iran, but noted that this process will be 'time-consuming.' She further stated that 'in the first four months of this year, trade between the EU and Iran has increased by 22 percent' and added that although challenges remain, the trend of changes is 'continuing in the right direction.' She concluded by emphasizing that 'Europe wants Iranian citizens to benefit from the lifting of sanctions.'