Primary US embargo on Iran to stay: official

The US has lifted all nuclear-related sanctions as promised in the nuclear deal with Iran, but has not changed the primary US embargo on Tehran, said an official of the US Treasury Department on Wednesday.

The US will continue to prohibit Americans from investing in Iran, importing or exporting to Iran most goods or services, or otherwise engaging in commercial or financial dealings with most Iranian persons or companies, Xinhua quoted Adam Szubin, acting under secretary of the Treasury Department, as saying.

He said the embargo long pre-dates Washington's concerns with Tehran's nuclear programme.

"Along these lines, let me also say clearly that we have not promised, nor do we have any plans, to give Iran access to the US financial system," Szubin said before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

On Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Szubin reiterated that it was in the national security interest of the US to ensure that the deal "works as intended and stands the test of time".

"Iran's breakout time has been extended to beyond one year, and we are all safer because of it," he said.

On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif urged the US and the European countries to take practical steps to implement the nuclear deal.

The countries involved in the nuclear talks and the concluding agreement with Iran have abided by their JCPOA commitments, however, Iran expects more practical steps from them, Zarif said.

--IANS

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