Leonhard Foeger/Reuters
The European Union has announced plans to set up a new payment system that will allow its businesses to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran and continue to trade with the country. Joined by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini announced the news Monday after high-level talks at the United Nations with the other members of the 2015 nuclear accord. Mogherini said EU member states will create a “legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Tehran.” In a statement, the countries expressed a determination “to protect the freedom of their economic operators to pursue legitimate business with Iran” after President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the deal and re-imposed sanctions on the country. The announcement came just hours after U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton vowed to exert “maximum pressure” on Tehran and warned of more sanctions to come. It also comes a day before Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani are due to deliver separate addresses at the U.N. General Assembly.