Reuters - Germany and its European partners are considering setting up a payment system with Iran that allows the continuation of business transactions with the Islamic Republic once U.S. sanctions kick in, an economy ministry spokeswoman said on Friday.

“As you know, it is a central goal of the EU and the German government to ensure that the processing of transactions is secured,” the spokeswoman said during a regular government news conference. “All options are being considered.”

Reporting by Michelle Martin and Riham Alkoussa; writing by Joseph Nasr; editing by Thomas Seythal