Switzerland lifts suspended Iran sanctions

Most of the suspended sanctions were related to Iran's oil industry Keystone

The Swiss cabinet decided on Wednesday to lift sanctions against Iran that were suspended since January 2014. The move comes after the agreement reached by Iran and a group of major countries over its nuclear programme. 

The suspended measures include a ban on precious metal transactions, reporting requirements for the trade and transport of Iranian oil, as well as insurance and reinsurance policies for such transactions.

The suspended sanctions also cover financial sector: The threshold for money transfers to and from Iranian nationals were increased tenfold, in terms of reporting obligations. 

The cabinet said its decision that will be effective from Thursday was in “support for the ongoing process to implement the nuclear agreement, and its confidence in the constructive intentions of the negotiating parties.” 

UN embargo

On July 14, the E3/EU+3 (China, Russia, United States, Germany, France and Britain) and Iran adopted a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which set guidelines on Iran’s limiting its nuclear programme and the eventual lifting of United Nations sanctions.

Since then, the EU and the US have been selectively lifting sanctions but the vast majority of UN sanctions against Iran still remain in place. 

The cabinet also said that it will “monitor implementation of the JCPOA and adapt Swiss measures accordingly” but warned that it “reserves the right to reintroduce the lifted measures” if the implementation of the agreement fails.