AT&T has signed a partnership agreement with Iranian state company Rightel, joining the ranks of other U.S. companies now doing business with Iran.
The Iranian nuclear deal, championed by President Barack Obama, loosens commercial sanctions between the U.S. and Iran. Boeing made headlines in June when it joined Iranian airlines to modernize its outdated fleet of aircraft. The Iranian deal with Boeing would reportedly be for 100 aircraft, demonstrating the enormity of the deal for a U.S. company with a country on the official sponsor of terror list.
“The fact that phones are working in Iran and the United States is a sign of good will on both sides,” the head of Iran’s chamber of commerce Masoud Daneshmand told The New York Times.
AT&T’s deal with Iran is particularly remarkable, given that Iran is accused of trying to hack the U.S. company as late as 2011. The plot was hatched by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, a paramilitary organization that reports directly to the Ayatollah. The IRGC remains sanctioned by the U.S. government for providing material support to terrorist organizations like Hezbollah.
Mark Dubowitz, an Iran expert at the hawkish Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told The New York Times in June any major commercial relationship with Iran is difficult because of U.S. sanctions. The U.S. Department of Treasury would not comment on how AT&T and Rightel would maintain a commercial relationship, given that banking relationships between the two countries are forbidden under U.S. sanctions.
The Obama administration believes that by encouraging trade with Iran, it will open opportunities for bilateral talks and reduce the hostile relationship with the Islamic Republic. Department of State spokesman John Kirby confirmed this position to the Free Beacon, saying, “We have seen a number of major companies make tangible plans to take advantage of the new commercial opportunities.”
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