"The most important challenge now is to find solutions for banking and finance because legitimate trade and investment needs banking partners and financial models that work. These issues are being addressed through intensive expert consultations happening basically on the daily basis, including in Brussels and in Tehran last week, but also on the political level," Mogherini said in her statement during a European Parliament plenary session.
The fact that some EU companies have already pulled out from their deals with Iran in fear of secondary US sanctions contributed to the increasing pressure inside Iran from those who had opposed the JCPOA, Mogherini suggested. The diplomat added that recent Iran plans to boost uranium enrichment should be considered in this context.
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The announcement of these plans was not contributing to building confidence between Iran and other parties of the JCPOA, and was meant to extort pressure on the international community, Mogherini pointed out.
Mogherini called on Iran to fight against money laundering and terrorism, and step up banking reforms to ensure effective cooperation with the European Union.
The failure of the JCPOA may create a "spiral of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East" that the world cannot afford, Mogherini stressed.
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In May, US President Donald Trump said Washington would pull out from the Iranian nuclear deal and re-introduce the US sanctions against Iran. The remaining parties of the agreement – China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union – said they were committed to preserving the deal.
Earlier in June, the EU leaders, including Mogherini, sent a letter to Washington, asking the United States to grant exemptions to major EU companies from the secondary sanctions which would be imposed on them over their cooperation with Iran as a result of the US withdrawal from the JCPOA.