Iran says has no unlimited patience for INSTEX

By Muhammet Kursun

TEHRAN (AA) – Iran said Monday it expects more from the European Union to put its alternative payment channel in practice.

Speaking to reporters, Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said the EU only voiced willingness to use the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), an alternative payment channel suggested by France to preserve the 2015 nuclear deal.

"What is indicated from European remarks show their will toward using INSTEX, but we haven’t seen anything except registering the payment channel,” he said.

"The important thing is next steps toward the issue and we expect Europeans to use the mechanism,” he added.

The spokesman said Tehran will accelerate talks with the EU over the issue.

“We clearly expressed that Iran and Iranians have limited patience,” he said, “EU must take tangible steps and we need to move it forward."

Despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision last year to leave the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran, Germany, France and the U.K. insisted that the agreement was the most effective way to prevent Iran from developing nuclear technology for military purposes.

Last month, the three European states announced the new mechanism of INSTEX to continue trade with Iran in defiance of U.S. sanctions.