US Has Not Seen Much Demand for EU Special Purpose Vehicle for Iran Transactions - Envoy
The United States has not seen much demand for using a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) created by the European Union to conduct transactions with Iran after the re-imposition of US sanctions, Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook told reporters on Monday.
"We have not seen much if any demand for the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)," Hook said.
Hook said teams from the State Department and Treasury had visited over 30 countries to educate officials on the dangers and the reputational risk of doing business with Iran.
"We think that message has been very well-received. We've seen only but support for our sanctions regime and we do not anticipate any significant corporation using a Special Purpose Vehicle," the envoy added.
The European Union came up with several initiatives to keep Tehran in the multilateral nuclear pact, including a SPV that it wants to set up with Russia and China to allow any country bypass US sanctions and continue trading with Iran.
In May, US President Donald Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal, and reimpose its sanctions against Iran that had been lifted under the agreement. The first round of the US restrictions entered into force in August, and a second, more severe round came into effect on Monday.