According to Sputnik, Either France or Germany might become the host nation for the European clearing house, usually referred to as a "special purpose vehicle" (SPV) — a payment mechanism that would allow European companies to bypass US-imposed sanctions on Iran.
The establishment of this mechanism is widely viewed as the moment of truth on whether the EU is genuinely ready to live up to its promise to keep the so-called Iranian nuclear deal. And, as US sanctions kicked in on November 5, Tehran is becoming more restless regarding the establishment of the SPV, the Guardian notes.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Sajjadpour has already expressed his frustration at the pace with which the SPV is being set up, saying: "What is lacking is both speed and efficiency."
The SPV would serve as a barter exchange mechanism, using neither US dollars, nor monetary exchanges between EU nations and Iran. Instead, it would utilize "credits" as a form of virtual currency. An Iranian company selling goods to a European firm would accumulate "credits" that could be later used to buy other goods from a different European firm.
Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign affairs chief, said trade between Iran and the EU was "a fundamental aspect of the Iranian right to have an economic advantage in exchange for what they have done so far, which is being compliant with all their nuclear-related commitments."
