The council was headed by President Hassan Rouhani, Parliament speaker Ali
Larijani and Judiciary chief Sadeq Amoli Larijani.
The president’s economic team including Budget and Planning Organization chief
Mohammad Baqer Nobakht; central bank governor Valiollah Seif; Economy Minister
Masoud Karbasian; Industry and Trade Minister Mohammad Shariatmadari; economic
advisor to president Mohammad Nehavandian; First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri;
as well as Parliament Economic Committee Chairman Mohammad Reza Pour-Ebrahimi;
Parliament Budget and Planning Committee Chairman Gholamreza Tajgardoon;
Parliamentary Center for Research Studies Kazem Jalali; National Prosecutor
Mohammad Jafar Montazeri; and Deputy Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje’i
were present at the Saturday meeting.
Since Donald Trump unilaterally exited the U.S. from the multilateral nuclear
agreement on May 8 and announced that his administration will re-impose
sanctions against Iran in two stages, first in August and then in November, a
number of foreign companies and banks have stopped cooperation with Iran.
Trump has also asked other countries to stop their purchases of the Iranian
oil by November otherwise they face secondary sanctions.
Es’haq Jahangiri announced on June 24 that the U.S. has started an "economic
war” against Iran.
Even before Trump officially announce U.S. exit from the nuclear deal the prices
of gold coin and foreign currencies started rocketing at the black market.
Iranian officials have vowed to disappoint the U.S. through reliance on local
capacities.
Under the nuclear agreement, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action (JCPOA) Iran is obliged to put limits on its nuclear activities in
exchange for termination of economic and financial sanctions. However, with the
U.S. pullout from the agreement, the destiny of the JCPOA is in jeopardy. Iran
has announced that if it cannot enjoy the economic benefits of the JCPOA there
is no justification to abide by it.
To keep Iran in the nuclear agreement, the European Union, especially its three
heavyweight members (Germany, France, and Britain), on Wednesday presented an
economic package to Iran, though Iran has said the package falls short of Iran’s
expectations.
Talking in the meeting on Saturday, Rouhani said European countries have the
"political will” to continue economic cooperation with Iran within the framework
of the nuclear agreement but they must take "practical decisions” in this
regard.
The Joint Commission of the JCPOA held first meeting at the foreign ministerial
level in Vienna on Friday since the U.S. walked out of the agreement.
European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini announced that Iran and
the remaining parties to the 2015 nuclear agreement had agreed to continue
negotiations, including on economic measures, over how to save the deal.
Source: Tasnim