As Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian, the esteemed President, indicated in his first press conference last week, he will formally request the Expediency Council to reconsider Iran's accession to these two conventions. Regarding domestic concerns about Iran's support for liberation movements, it should be noted that Iran can accede to these conventions by declaring reservations and interpretative statements, provided that the core objective of the conventions is not undermined. For instance, Egypt has acceded to the convention but declared in a statement that resistance movements, in all their forms, fighting for autonomy and freedom from occupied territories, are not considered within the convention's definition of terrorism (although other countries can object, and such an objection would only prevent the application of that specific treaty or article between the two objecting states). Furthermore, Iran can declare a reservation concerning Article 24 of the convention, stating its unwillingness to refer disputes to the International Court of Justice or arbitration, a precedent set by countries such as Oman, Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. It is important to note that internationally, there is no single, universally agreed-upon definition of terrorism among nations, and countries' approaches to identifying which groups are terrorist and which are liberation movements vary. Many countries have acceded to these conventions with reservations. Finally, it should be highlighted that at the United Nations level, groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah have not been designated as terrorist organizations.
In accordance with international recommendations on combating money laundering and terrorist financing, Iran should freeze the assets of individuals and groups on the UN's terrorism-related sanctions list, which includes members of the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and others. While the implementation of this recommendation does not appear to impact Iran's national interests, its execution has been largely unclear. However, accurate reporting in this regard would not pose a problem for Iran. Another important issue is customer identification in financial institutions and assessing their risk levels. This is directly related to banking practices and the extent of services provided to customers. Accurate customer identification can help control issues such as money laundering, which Iran also faces. News related to embezzlement and large-scale money laundering indicates that legal processes to combat these problems are not adequately addressed in Iran.
Furthermore, the role of exchange bureaus (Sarafis) is crucial. The Central Bank must bring unauthorized exchange bureaus under control. Exchange bureaus operating illegally can become conduits for the movement of illicit funds and their exit from the country. Exchange bureaus must be licensed, and strict oversight should be enforced on their compliance with domestic anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) laws to prevent such crimes.
The question might arise as to how FATF's 40 recommendations are assessed. The evaluation system for these recommendations is based on four levels, with each recommendation being separately assessed as: Compliant, Largely Compliant, Partially Compliant, and Non-Compliant. This rating is based on each country's self-assessment report, followed by a visit from an evaluation team composed of experts from other countries. Typically, this team comprises experts from countries that have good relations with the host nation. The evaluation includes examining the existence of laws and regulations, as well as their practical and effective implementation. The evaluation team does not have unlimited access to the country's financial systems; instead, it conducts its assessment through interviews with government officials, regulators, and financial institutions. There is no obligation to provide specific reports to the evaluation team unless domestic authorities wish to offer precise information on their anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) measures. For example, the team can review the number of licensed exchange bureaus, the volume of suspicious transaction reports, customer identification procedures, and the prosecution of individuals for money laundering and terrorist financing offenses.
Finally, it should be noted that Iran possesses anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) laws that could potentially achieve good scores in a technical compliance assessment, although challenges and criticisms regarding the practical implementation of these laws persist.