EU hopes against hope on Iran

President Emmanuel Macron of France has offered himself as a broker in the US-Iran Gulf standoff, but the chances of an agreement are small

Macron has launched his initiative aiming to keep alive the Iran nuclear deal, signed in 2015, which the EU continues to support. The EU has also set up an alternative payment system to help European companies trade with Iran outside the US banking apparatus—the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanged (Instex)—but there are few takers. Many European companies fear penalties against their US subsidiaries if they trade with Iran, along with denial of trade to the US market. Iranian exports to the EU are down 93pc. China, the biggest importer of Iranian oil, is better placed to shrug off US sanctions, yet has cut hydrocarbons imports by at least half, with many exporters having the same concer