Former Italian Foreign Minister, Ambassador Giulio Terzi, warned companies that the risks of doing business with Iran were not worth it. Speaking for United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), a not-for-profit, non-partisan, advocacy group whose members include a former CIA Director as well as a number of former Ambassadors, Terzi said Western businesses face significant financial, legal and reputational risks they face in dealing with Tehran.
UANI has identified a matrix of 10 key risk categories companies and sovereign states face should they pursue deals with Tehran. These risks include: kidnap and arrest; compromised cybersecurity; corruption; and the danger of inadvertently dealing with a Revolutionary Guard Corps front company or being drawn into money laundering. However, given Iran’s human rights’ record, its terror financing, the activities of pro-Iranian Shiite militias, and the current situation in Syria, the reputational risks were also enormous.
UANI’s video on Iran Business Risks can be viewed here.
Speaking at a seminar at the Italian Senate, Terzi drew attention to the sponsorship and attendance of sanctioned Iranian companies at the 2016 “Iran Country Presentation” exhibition in Rome. He singled out Bank Sepah, which, according to U.S. Treasury Department officials, “has actively assisted Iran’s pursuit of missiles capable of carrying weapons of mass destruction;” the Industrial Development and Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO); the Iranian Mines & Mining Industries Development & Renovation (IMIDRO); and Khorasan Metallurgy Industry, which is sanctioned for its role in developing Iran’s nuclear program.
