The Iranian government has vowed to take necessary measures to reduce the impact of the country’s listing on the Financial Action Taskforce’s (FATF) blacklist.
Head of the Iranian presidential office and chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi said the government will work hard to create an appropriate climate for economic activities.
“We are trying to create solutions to reduce the impact of the current conditions on the economy in light of sanctions and extreme pressure exerted by the enemies,” he said.
President Hassan Rouhani has indirectly accused the Expediency Discernment Council (EDC) of being the reason behind Iran's inclusion on the FATF blacklist.
He demanded holding the body accountable for the listing because of its refusal to pass laws that allow the government to comply with international standards to combat terrorism financing and money laundering.
Rouhani pointed to the government and parliament’s ratification of laws to join the Palermo and Terrorist Financing Conventions.
Last year, the 12-member Guardian Council rejected the parliament’s decision, leading to a dispute between both bodies, which the EDC intervened to solve.
The president also accused FATF of exploiting an action outside the government and parliament’s jurisdiction as a “pretext” to take a decision that “doesn’t serve people’s interests.”
“As it was expected, it (the blacklisting) made the United States happy and will justify its intensification of cruel and inhumane sanctions,” he noted.
“Now, those who gave pretext to the United States must be held accountable for their unprofessional positions,” Rouhani stressed.
The Paris-based FATF blacklisted Tehran after it failed to comply with international anti-terrorism financing norms.
It came after more than three years of warnings for Iran to either enact terrorist financing conventions or see its reprieve from the blacklist lifted and some counter-measures imposed.
“Given Iran’s failure to enact the Palermo and Terrorist Financing Conventions in line with the FATF Standards, the FATF fully lifts the suspension of counter-measures and calls on its members and urges all jurisdictions to apply effective counter-measures,” the group’s 39 members said in a statement last week.
