LATEST: European Court Overturns EU Sanctions on Iran Bank, Shipping Line, and Other Companies
UPDATE 2000 GMT: Photo of today’s meeting in Davos, Switzerland between Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry:
Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry will hold nuclear talks on Friday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss city of Davos.
Zarif will also meet other counterparts from the 5+1 Powers (US, Britain, France, Germany, China, and Russia). The lead nuclear negotiators from both sides will also hold talks.
Last week, Iran and the 5+1 failed to close gaps on key issues such as the number and level of Tehran’s centrifuges for uranium enrichment and the lifting of US-led sanctions. The talks have been extended to July 1 after they twice failed to meet deadlines for a comprehensive settlement last year.
Iranian State media is cautious about today’s meetings, saying the talk between Zarif and Kerry — who negotiated for seven hours on January 14 before the inconclusive plenary between Iran and the 5+1 last weekend — is expected to be brief.
European Court Overturns EU Sanctions on Iran Bank, Shipping Line, and Other Companies
The European General Court has overturned the European Union’s sanctions on an Iranian bank.
The court said the EU has not presented any justification for freezing the assets and economic resources of Bank Tejarat.
In a separate ruling, the General Court annulled the bans on Ocean Capital Administration, an Iranian shipping line, and companies linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines.
The ruling follows other European court decisions pushing back sanctions. In late 2014, the Court of Justice annulled restrictions on the Central Bank of Iran.
However, the most significant European sanctions, in force since July 2012, remain in place. They have sharply curbed Iran’s oil exports through a ban on insurance for tankers and have imposed limits on Tehran’s financial and banking sectors.
