TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s potential accession to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) may exacerbate the financial challenges posed by US and Western sanctions, according to Iranian expert Farshid Bagherian in a statement to Trend.

According to Trend News Agency, the integration into FATF, an intergovernmental body aimed at combating money laundering and terrorism financing, could complicate Iran’s ability to conduct certain international transactions. This is largely because current sanctions force Iran to utilize various companies as fronts for exporting crude oil and other products clandestinely. “Joining FATF will make it very difficult to establish these companies and secretly sell Iranian crude oil and its products, thereby creating financial problems,” he explained.

The US renewed sanctions on Iran in November 2018, targeting over 700 banks, companies, and individuals involved in exporting Iranian oil, linked to concerns over Iran’s nuclear program. The FATF has warned Iran that failing to enhance its regulatory framework could lead to its continued presence on the blacklist of non-cooperating countries. Despite this, Iran has complied with 37 of the 41 required FATF measures, with the remaining four involving legislative changes that are currently under review by the Iranian government and parliament.

The FATF, established in 1989 by the G7 to fight money laundering, includes 37 members with its secretariat based in Paris. Iran has been on the FATF blacklist since 2007, with specific countermeasures enforced since 2009, making international financial and banking dealings with Iran risky. These measures were temporarily suspended in 2016, but in February 2020, FATF reinstated Iran on its blacklist as a non-cooperative country.