EU lawmakers approve plan for European Investment Bank work in Iran

EU lawmakers gave approval on Wednesday for the European Investment Bank (EIB) to do business in Iran, overcoming a blocking attempt and keeping alive plans to save the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran that Washington has abandoned. The EIB, the European Union's not-for-profit long-term investment arm, is a key pillar of the bloc's attempts to maintain business links with Iran in the face of Washington's decision to re-impose sanctions on the Islamic Republic. However, the EU lawmakers' decision does not oblige the EIB to work with Iran, a move that could jeopardise its ability to raise money on US markets and so have far-reaching consequences for its operations. The European Parliament overwhelmingly blocked a motion by far-right lawmakers seeking to prevent the European Commission from lifting restrictions on the EIB in Iran, setting the stage for the measure to come into effect at the start of August.