WASHINGTON (AP) – A senior Obama administration official says Iran will not be given access to the U.S. financial system as part of the sanctions relief granted under the landmark nuclear deal.
Testifying Tuesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Thomas Shannon of the State Department says reports that Iran would be allowed to deal directly with U.S. banks are not true.
Shannon, the undersecretary of state for political affairs, says the U.S. is clarifying regulations that allow Iran to access money being made available to it after the sanctions were lifted when implementation of the deal began.
The Associated Press reported last week that the Treasury Department has prepared a general license that would permit offshore financial institutions to conduct foreign currency trades in dollars in support of legitimate business with Iran.