Issue 84 | March 2019 | INSTEX - Finding a way forward with Iranian trade
INSTEX – Finding a way forward with Iranian trade After a month of heated debate over the future of the JCPOA and the integrity of the EU’s new payment mechanism – the INSTEX, the sudden resignation and reinstatement of Iran’s Foreign Minister exposed the polarised vision at the top of Iran’s politics of the country’s place in the global economy. In this newsletter, we address some of the main criticisms aimed at the INSTEX, which is the key to Iran’s economic engagement with the outside world. Stock markets plunged in February upon the Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s resignation from the government. Mr Zarif posted his resignation on social media, causing a political maelstrom, and ultimately forcing the Supreme Leader to effectively “back him or sack him” in the role. The seasoned cabinet minister felt undermined by interference from other senior figures in the country’s foreign policy, and resigned following a visit from the Syrian President, Bashar
