Iran not seeking access to US financial system: Zarif

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says Iran is not seeking access to the US financial system but Washington must assure other countries they could do business in Iran without risking penalties.

“We never asked to have access to your financial system,” Mohammad Javad Zarif said, referring to the United States, in an interview with The New York Times.

“What we asked was to implement the nuclear deal, which requires the United States to allow European financial institutions to have peace of mind for dealing with Iran,” he added.

The remarks came after Zarif held a meeting with his American counterpart John Kerry at the United Nations to discuss the proper implementation of the nuclear agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

A head of his Tuesday talks with Kerry, Zarif called on Washington to stop meddling in Iran’s banking and financial ties with other countries and said the US must “seriously” live up to its side of the nuclear agreement.

MG