Iran's refusal to complete financial reforms that would bring it into line with global norms will only result in its isolation and give the United States a chance to forge an international alliance against the Islamic Republic, a senior lawmaker said.
"Under the current circumstances, we should not tie our national interests and interactions with other countries to America's behavior. Enemies are making every effort to isolate us internationally and any move that could cut Iran's relations with the outside world will definitely not benefit the country," Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh also told ICANA.
Falahatpisheh, who is the chairman of Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, made the statements amid growing calls by some politicians to stop the process of deliberating on new anti-money laundering and terrorism financing rules in response to Washington's recent designation of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps as a terrorist organization.
The Financial Action Task Force, a Paris-based global watchdog, has given Iran until June to introduce the required reforms or face increased international scrutiny of its banks, Reuters reported.
Foreign businesses say Tehran's compliance with FATF rules is key if it wants to attract investors, especially after the Trump administration reimposed financial, industrial and energy sanctions on the OPEC producer last year.
Exacerbation of Crisis
Falahatpisheh said any step that could lead to an "escalation of crisis" between Iran and the world should be avoided.
The government of President Hassan Rouhani and his supporters in parliament have been making efforts to secure the adoption of four bills to bring Iran into compliance with FATF regulations.
Two of the bills have been approved but the process has been slowed by conservatives who oppose the legislation, arguing that it could hamper Tehran's financial support for allies such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, which the US lists as a terrorist group.
The FATF-related issues are not "directly linked" to the United States so Iran should not choose the path of "isolation" by refusing to make the necessary amendments, the parliamentarian said. "This is exactly what the United States wants."
Falahatpisheh noted that many American politicians are opposed to US President Donald Trump's policies.
"We should not create a situation where people like [White House national security adviser John] Bolton and Trump could muster an international consensus against Iran," he said.
Tensions between Tehran and Washington increased after Trump pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers last May, and then reimposed sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
The restoration of sanctions is part of a wider effort by the US president to force Iran to abandon its nuclear and missile programs and alter its Middle East policies.
The European signatories to the nuclear accord—France, Britain and Germany—have tied Iran's removal from the FATF blacklist to a new channel for non-dollar trade designed to avert US sanctions.
