European countries seeking to circumvent U.S. trade sanctions against Iran by avoiding use of the dollar have been slammed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu said Sunday in a video statement European countries “should be ashamed of themselves” for seeking to trade with Iran. He says the countries were enabling Iran to develop nuclear weapons by enabling it to transact with the rest of the world.
Last week, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden said they were joining INSTEX, a body designed to facilitate European commerce with Iran, as Breitbart News reported.
“As founding shareholders of the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), France, Germany and the United Kingdom warmly welcome the decision taken by the governments of Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, to join INSTEX as shareholders,” the three said in a joint statement.
The Paris-based INSTEX functions as a clearing house allowing Iran to continue to sell oil and import other products or services in exchange.
The system has not yet enabled any transactions, although last year it was called “morally bankrupt” in a different attack from Israel:
INSTEX was created by Germany, France and Britain to coordinate import and export payments so European companies can do business with Iran despite U.S. pressure.
Iran has given INSTEX a cool reception in part because it doesn’t include vital oil trade.
Netanyahu has previously praised U.S. President Donald Trump for ratcheting up pressure on the Islamic Republic, and called on European nations to follow his lead.
“It symbolizes the determination to curb Iran’s regional aggression and its ongoing plans to arm itself with nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu said last November.