The agreement Iran struck with six world powers to curb its nuclear program allows Tehran to do business with airplane manufacturers, deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said Thursday.
Rhodes was asked if the U.S. government would allow Boeing to sell Iran more than 100 airliners.
“For the U.S. government, obviously the deal itself allows for licensing in the civil aviation space,” Rhodes told the Atlantic Council in Washington. “We generally don’t…become public advocates for specific companies. But that is something that American companies can pursue.”
The transaction is reportedly worth $17 billion and would unfold over a decade.
“We understand that the situation in the region is complicated and ever-changing,” Boeing told the Washington-based Al-Monitor newspaper. “Should the U.S. government reinstate sanctions against the sale of commercial airplanes to Iranian airlines, we will cease all sales and delivery activities as required by U.S. law.”
French manufacturer Airbus has a tentative agreement for 118 planes worth $25 billion with Tehran.
Boeing underscored that government interference will hurt U.S. companies.
The deals “can go to aerospace companies in other countries, plus the jobs that go with those business opportunities — or U.S. companies and workers can participate in what is expected to be a growing market for decades to come,” the statement reportedly continued.
Another hurdle Boeing faces is how to get paid given that U.S. banks are still barred from conducting business with Iran.
