Iran says country “stronger” after sanctions

WASHINGTON (Agencies)
Tehran blasts World Bank for refusing loans

Iran is stronger after a host of international sanctions, the country’s finance minister Shamseddin
Hosseini asserted in Washington on Friday while accusing the World Bank of “discriminatory behavior” towards the Islamic Republic.

“After these sanctions we are a much stronger country,” said Hosseini, striking a resolute tone amid international curbs on trade with Islamic Republic and sanctions against firms and individuals linked to the country’s controversial nuclear program.

He acknowledged that the sanctions “cause some kind of problem for us.” But he said, “When people solve problems, they get stronger. Today, we are much stronger,” he said.

	After these sanctions we are a much stronger country
Iranian Finance Minister Shamseddin Hosseini

Hosseini was speaking in the U.S. capital on the fringes of a meeting of the International Monetary Fund’s 187 members.

His visit comes just over a week after President Barack Obama ordered sanctions against eight senior Iranian officials for alleged human rights abuses during the crackdown against those protesting the 2009 elections.

Regardless, Hosseini claimed there was no difficulty in trading or securing hard currency to trade with.

“The world is big and the people who are trading (with us) find ways to transfer money.”

Questioned about how Iran finds dollars on open markets, he responded: “There is no substantive obstacle regarding that.”

Yet despite Hosseini’s claims, evidence in Iran suggests sanctions are taking a toll.

Most banks in the United Arab Emirates, Iran’s main trading partner, have stopped money transfers there since August after similar decisions by the United States and the European Union over Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iranian banks have gradually refused to sell individuals hard currency in recent weeks without explanation or any government announcement.

	The shocking point is that, based on inquiry made from the legal department of the World Bank, the developmental and humanitarian projects are excluded from the imposed sanctions on Iran
Hosseini

“Discriminatory behavior”

Also on Friday, Iran accused the World Bank of “discriminatory behavior” for refusing to authorize new development assistance to the country.

Hosseini, in a speech to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund plenary session, said development and humanitarian assistance was not part of U.N. sanctions, imposed by major powers on Iran to curb its nuclear development.

He said the refusal by the global lender since 2005 to consider a new lending strategy, known as the Country Assistance Strategy (CAS), for Iran went against the Bank’s articles of agreement.

He said the World Bank’s actions were depriving a member country of developmental resources.

“The shocking point is that, based on inquiry made from the legal department of the World Bank, the developmental and humanitarian projects are excluded from the imposed sanctions on Iran,” Hosseini said, “in no section of the legal opinion reasons can be found to reduce relations and not financing such new projects.”

U.S. lawmakers have pressured the World Bank led by Robert Zoellick, an American, not to lend to Iran and have threatened to withhold U.S. funding to the poverty-fighting institution if it approves new lending.

According to the World Bank’s website, the global lender has not approved new lending to Iran since 2005. It said that Security Council resolution 1737 (March 2007) on Iran, while calling on member states and global organizations to refrain from making new financing available to Iran, exempts humanitarian and development activities conducted by international financial institutions.

“As we have informed the (Iranian) authorities, because of recent sanctions and uncertainty surrounding individual banks, we are reviewing all our disbursement arrangements,” a World Bank official told Reuters.

Hosseini said in his meetings with the World Bank, officials had cited U.N. sanctions and “negative opinion of some countries” as reasons for not lending to Iran.

“My core question is whether this behavior is based upon good governance or political observations?” Hosseini said.

Citing specific clauses in the Bank’s articles of agreement, Hosseini said the World Bank was “forbidden to have any kind of interference with the political affairs of the member countries nor can be influenced by the political inclination of members countries”.

He said even though the Bank had halted disbursement of already approved loans to Iran, it continued to charge interest and other fees.