Sanctions

European countries set up payment channel with Iran to bypass US sanctions

European countries have joined forces to establish their own payment channel to Iran and circumvent United States sanctions, according to German broadcaster NDR.
Germany, France and Britain have been working for months to establish a measure allowing payments between Europe and Iran to continue, in the wake of the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement in May.
Now the European countries have officially established that channel, named INSTEX -- an acronym for Instrument in Support Of Trade Exchanges -- NDR reported Thursday, in a move likely to displease Washington.
"We have been looking for ways to obtain this agreement because we are firmly convinced that it serves our strategic security interests in Europe," German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said during a press briefing in Brussels.
"We do not want Iran to get out of this agreement and back into uranium enrichment. This has to do with our security interests in Europe," he said.
Maas added that Germany was "working very closely" with France, Britain and the European Union to "implement this special-purpose vehicle."
For its part, the French Foreign Ministry told CNN a joint statement would be sent out later Thursday when EU foreign ministers meet in Bucharest.