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RFL/RE – A European Union official says the bloc has removed sanctions on the Iranian tech startup ArvanCloud because it “no longer” saw the need to keep them on a company it once accused of being involved in Tehran’s crackdown on Internet access.
The Council of the European Union on April 4 decided to drop its sanctions on ArvanCloud — less than two years after imposing them — without explanation. The EU official confirmed the decision to RFE/RL late on April 8.
The company remains under U.S. and British sanctions.
The EU placed sanctions on ArvanCloud in November 2022, at the height of nationwide protests, for its alleged involvement in Internet censorship and “efforts of the Iranian government to shut down the Internet” during the unrest.
It also accused the company of having ties to people “responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran,” including the EU-sanctioned Information and Communications Technology Minister Isa Zarepour.
At the time, ArvanCloud said that it had “failed to counter rumors and defend “our innocence.”
The company said it “welcomes” the EU’s decision to delist it, which it said came after it presented “technical and legal documentations” to the European Court of Justice challenging the sanctions.
An EU official speaking on condition of anonymity told RFE/RL on April 8 the bloc’s member states “agreed that the reasons to keep [ArvanCloud] on the list are no longer there” during the council’s regular review of its sanctions regime.
“This is based on the deliberations and assessment in the relevant council bodies, which are confidential,” the official said, without mentioning the court case.
The EU’s apparent lack of transparency has drawn the ire of advocates.
“To say that the delisting of a company listed for its human rights violations occurred like this is very concerning,” said Mahsa Alimardani, senior program officer for the Middle East and North Africa at Article19, a U.K.-based rights organization.
“There was very little public transparency over the process or the opportunity for civil society to get involved.”
A leaked document, which Alimardani said had been independently verified by Article19, suggests that the government of Iran’s conservative President Ebrahim Raisi supported ArvanCloud’s court case.
The United States and Britain imposed sanctions on ArvanCloud in 2023, and Washington says it has no intention of delisting the company.
“ArvanCloud will remain sanctioned by the United States for its clear role in facilitating censorship to the detriment of the people of Iran,” U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a press conference on April 8.
He added that the company “maintains a close relationship” with Iran’s Intelligence Ministry.
“This is a very dangerous precedent for human rights advocacy and accountability,” Alimardani said of the EU’s decision, but added, “The very strong and enduring U.S. sanctions might still deter the EU from doing business with Arvan[Cloud].”
