US prone to retaliation with Iran visa law

The US has put itself at risk of retaliation through visa restrictions against Iran, approved by its congress in breach of a July nuclear accord. 

European diplomats have warned of possible retribution against the United States over the new law which bars citizens of 38 countries mainly in Europe from using the US visa-free system if they travel to Iran.

On Wednesday, EU Ambassador to Washington David O'Sullivan described the law as "excessively rigid,” saying it would complicate the European Union’s planned review of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) next year.

"It is clear that to the extent that this new legislation creates new discriminatory treatment, then that will be part of that review process in April," he told AFP in an interview.   

About 20 million people each year travel to the United States without a visa for stays of less than 90 days, including about 13 million Europeans.

Some US lawmakers had sought to kill or amend the measure, expressing concerns that European nations would offer reciprocal treatment against US travelers.

US trying to assure Iran

New visa regulations targeting visitors to Iran are seen as the last resort by US lawmakers to torpedo the nuclear agreement which moves into the implantation phase in the imminent future.

The US government is reportedly trying to assuage Iran. US Secretary of State John Kerry wrote his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif to assure that the measure would not undermine international trade with Tehran, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

Tehran reacted promptly to the new law. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, also a senior negotiator, said Sunday it "certainly affects economic, tourist, scientific and cultural exchanges with Iran and it contravenes the nuclear deal."

Zarif said in New York on Friday if the new law were applied, Iran would declare it in violation of the nuclear accord because the restrictions amount to a de facto new sanction on Iran.  

Apparently acknowledging the violation, Kerry said the Obama administration was “exploring ways to ensure visitors to Iran aren’t unfairly blocked from entering the US,” the Journal said.

He specifically cited the State Department’s ability to expedite visa applications and to issue longer-term, multiple-entry travel documents, the paper said. He also said the White House had the power to issue waivers to potentially exempt individuals from the new travel laws, it added.

Kerry said the US government was committed to implementing the accord “so as not to interfere with legitimate business interests in Iran," the Journal said.

Under the nuclear agreement, international firms will be allowed to do trade with Iran but the US will still continue to block its companies from such activities except for sales of airplane parts and limited other transactions.

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