IRNA – Joining of Iran to the Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) convention will facilitate Iran's banking relations with the world.


In general, joining CFT is at the interest of the country, Iranian Parliament Vice Speaker Ali Motahari said on Sunday.

He noted that joining CFT can lead to types of reform in Iran's banking system and lead to facilitation of its relations with the world banking system.

He underlined that joining CFT will not lead to spying on Iran's financial transactions.

Iranian lawmakers at a closed session on Sunday approved the bill on the joining of Iran to CFT convention.

At the parliament session, the lawmakers voted 143 in favor of the bill, 120 against and five abstained.

The CFT bill, approved by Iran with preconditions, includes an introduction, 28 articles and an appendix.

The CFT bill is one of the four Financial Action Task Force (FATF) bills which include reform in the money-laundering rule, change in the funding terrorism law, the joining of Iran to CFT and the joining of the country to the Palermo Convention.

Financial Action Task Force (FATF) introduces itself as an inter-governmental body established in 1989 by the Ministers of its Member jurisdictions. The objectives of the FATF are to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money-laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system. The FATF is therefore a “policy-making body” which works to generate the necessary political will to bring about national legislative and regulatory reforms in these areas.

In its recent session, FATF has given a year as another chance to Iran to make changes in its financial activities as the country has already been transparent in its related commitments.

Before the approval of the bill, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told the lawmakers that the Majlis (the Iranian Parliament) was making an important decision according to the public interest of the nation to disarm the US of its next excuse against Iran.