US Sanctions On CBI Will Have Minor Impacts: Banking Specialist

Tehran, Jan 2, IRNA – The bill of sanctions signed by US President Barack Obama against Central Bank of Iran will have minor impacts on its operation, senior banking specialist Taj Mohammad Gajavand said on Sunday. He told IRNA that the US sanctions on Central Bank of Iran (CBI) may have temporary impacts on transactions with those obeying the US. Otherwise, there are many alternatives to neutralize the US extraterritorial law. He recalled the difficulties created for Iran in the course of the US-backed Iraqi-imposed war (1980-1988) and said that during the war the US adopted extraterritorial law to limit international transactions of Iranian banking system and the current sanctions are nothing more than that. Gajavand said that CBI can take appropriate measures to neutralize the US extraterritorial law through barter transactions with international banks. He said that CBI would carry out transactions with the international banks and deposit foreign currency reserves with them. The banking specialist said that CBI would utilize services of branches of the international banks for its transactions. He said that the banks in Far-East countries would be suitable channels for CBI to perform transactions. He said that the US extraterritorial sanctions would be weaker than the sanctions imposed by the United Nations though Iranian economy has managed to get rid of their harmful impacts. He said that the CBI will overcome the impacts of the US sanctions if it envisages financial discipline and economic austerity. President Barack Obama signed into law on Saturday a defense funding bill that imposes sanctions on financial institutions dealing with Iran's central bank, while expressing many reservations about some of its provisions. He called for exemptions to avoid upsetting energy markets. The sanctions target both private and government-controlled banks - including central bank - and would take hold after a two- to six-month warning period, depending on the transactions, a senior Obama administration official said./end