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Can Rouhani reel in the IRGC's financial empire?

Still under fire by hardliners over the nuclear deal, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani is now confronting them over compliance with international banking regulations.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani makes a speech during a signing ceremony after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Azeri President Ilham Aliyev (not seen) in Baku, Azerbaijan, August 8, 2016.  REUTERS/Alexander Nemenov/Pool - RTSLVFF

For months, Iran’s hardliners have used the term “JCPOA” — the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — to undermine the credibility of President Hassan Rouhani's administration. Over the past couple of weeks, they have adopted the term “FATF” — the Financial Action Task Force — which according to the Iranian hardliners represents a “capitulation” of Iranian interests to Western powers. As with the JCPOA, chances are that opposition to the implementation of FATF rules in Iran is based on politics rather than facts. Rouhani's opponents realize that non-compliance with the FATF will limit the economic benefits of the JCPOA and hence undermine the president’s credibility in the eyes of the general public and the business community.

The FATF is “an inter-governmental body established in 1989 … to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.” Of note, the process for Iran becoming a member was initiated during the administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005-13).

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