The EU’s General Court on 5 February ruled to annul the sanctions imposed by the EU governments against one of Iran’s largest bank, Bank Saderat, following up on a similar judgment to lift sanctions on Bank Mellat on 29 January. The latest ruling coincides with the coming into effect on 6 February of new US sanctions intended to further restrict Iran’s oil revenues overseas (see p12).
The two rulings also come on the eve of a scheduled meeting on 26 February in Kazakhstan between Iran and six world powers – Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia and the US – aimed at addressing the issue of the nuclear standoff. But these rulings could possibly weaken some aspects of the EU sanctions regime against Iran’s nuclear program. (CONTINUED - 560 WORDS)
