Israel, US to form joint team to pressure Iran
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon and his American counterpart Steven Mnuchin decide to set up a joint team for the enforcement of economic sanctions against Iran; Kahlon says 'We should be thankful to the US' since sanctions are proving to be effective.
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon and US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin agreed Tuesday at a meeting in Washington to set to establish a joint team to work on enforcing economic sanctions on Iran. During their meeting in Washington, the two also discussed the economic cooperation between Israel and the US and joint tax issues.
This is the fourth time the two ministers have met in the past year. The meeting's main focus was enforcing US sanctions on Iran. The two agreed to enforce the sanctions in the high-tech sector, since the responsibility for implementing the economic sanctions rests with the ministries of finance of both countries.
"The economic sanctions on Iran led by the US are proving to be effective," the finance minister said on Wednesday.
According to Kahlon, "the sanctions contribute to the removal of the threat to Israel's security and to the security of the entire free world, and this is why we should be thankful to the US."
"My meeting with US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is intended to further our strategic economic ties with the US. The joint team that we have formed will be of great importance in tightening sanctions on Iran. This is a great news to the State of Israel," Kahlon concluded.
In addition to the Iranian issue, the ministers discussed economic cooperation between Israel and the United States and joint taxation issues.
The meeting was also attended by Finance Ministry Director-General Shai Babad and Eran Nitzan, Israel's economic attaché in Washington.
Kahlon also addressed the new development in a tweet Wednesday morning, saying "We are working with true friends in Washington, and together are looking after Israel's security interests."
US President Donald Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in May and reimposed sanctions to choke Iran's economy and force it to renegotiate or change direction. The move has been exacerbating a financial crisis in Iran that has sent its currency tumbling.
