US Reconsidering License for Sale of Boeing and Airbus Aircraft to Iran
The US Treasury Secretary announced on Wednesday, June 24, that the United States will reconsider its license for the sale of Boeing and Airbus passenger aircraft to Iran.
Steven Mnuchin, who appeared before the House Ways and Means Committee to present the new US budget proposal, emphasized that he “will do everything in the Treasury Department to impose additional sanctions against Iran, Syria, and North Korea to protect American lives.”
The announcement of the reconsideration of the license for selling new aircraft to Iran comes as Rex Tillerson, the US Secretary of State, also said during his Senate confirmation hearings that Washington would reconsider the Iran nuclear deal.
Since the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in December 2015, Iran has signed three contracts to purchase dozens of passenger aircraft with Airbus, Boeing, and ATR consortiums, valued at tens of billions of dollars.
So far, fewer than 10 of these aircraft have been delivered to Tehran, but most are set to be delivered within the coming years.
Based on a ban imposed since 1995, Western manufacturers had been prohibited from selling aircraft equipment and spare parts to Iranian companies.
The sale of new aircraft is part of the commitments made by six world powers to Iran through the nuclear agreement in June 2015, in which Iran agreed to suspend much of its nuclear activities.
However, Donald Trump, the new US President, is a staunch opponent of this agreement and had promised during his election campaign that he would tear up the JCPOA if elected.
Nevertheless, the US State Department informed Congress in late April that Iran has remained committed to its obligations under the JCPOA and therefore extended the suspension of nuclear sanctions for another 120 days.
Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department has on several occasions placed Iranian individuals and entities on its new sanctions list due to Tehran’s ballistic missile program.
Iran’s commercial air fleet currently consists of 140 passenger aircraft with an average age of 20 years, and the need to replace them with new aircraft is acutely felt.
Source: Radio Farda
