TEHRAN – An MP sitting on the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee has thrown his full support behind the Rouhani administration’s decision to cooperate with the Financial Action Task Force, contrasting the pessimism shown by opponents inside the country. 

“Technically speaking, the FATF is a banking inevitability for us in the post-sanctions era that will pave the way for interaction with international systems,” said Alireza Rahimi on Wednesday. 

The support comes one day after government spokesman Mohammad Baqer Nobakht said the Supreme National Security Council had approved cooperation with the international body, ending opponents’ acerbic criticism of the move by the government.   

The opponents say if Iran becomes a member of the FATF, then it should consider restrictions for some organizations, including the IRGC-controlled Khatam al-Anbiya construction company, as long as they are backlisted by the U.S. 

There are others who also cite accession to the money laundering body a national security threat, fearing disclosure of the Iranians’ banking information. 

Trying to soothe the concern, CBI governor Valiollah Seif has said Iranians’ bank accounts information will remain safe and not passed on to the FATF in exchanges with the policy-making body of the international financial system.

At a meeting of the task force attended by its 37 members in June in South Korea, the money laundering monitoring body acceded to a 12-month moratorium of some restrictions on Iran. 

"The FATF welcomes Iran's adoption of, and high-level political commitment to, an Action Plan to address its strategic (anti-money laundering and anti-terror financing) deficiencies," the task force said in its statement. 

"The FATF therefore has suspended counter-measures for 12 months in order to monitor Iran's progress in implementing the Action Plan.” 

Closer ties between Tehran and the FAFT is an outcome of the deal Iran and world powers reached an agreement on the Middle East powerhouse’s nuclear program. 

The accession, if finalized, will make it easier for Iran to re-engage with the global banking and financial systems. 

AK/PA