A subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom could have wrongly terminated contracts with the Hamburg branch of an Iranian bank after a ruling by the European Court of Justice.
As emerged from a judgment published on Tuesday, companies may only violate EU rules to ward off US sanctions against Iran if they would otherwise be affected by disproportionate effects, in particular of an economic nature.
Accordingly, the so-called blocking regulation of the EU applies.
This prohibits European companies from breaking off business relations with Iran solely for fear of US sanctions under threat of fines.
This is to prevent the USA from breaking the agreement concluded with the government in Tehran to prevent an Iranian atomic bomb by unilaterally withdrawing and reintroducing sanctions.
The US exit took place in 2018 under the then President Donald Trump.
Compliance with sanctions
The EU regulation also regulates that European companies can demand compensation for possible costs and losses through so-called US secondary sanctions.
With the threat of these extraterritorial sanctions, the US actually wants to force companies around the world to adhere to the US punitive measures against Iran.
On the basis of the ECJ ruling, the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court of Hamburg will now have to decide on the specific case.
According to the ECJ, Telekom Deutschland has so far argued in the proceedings that the blocking regulation does not affect its right to declare the ordinary termination of a contract without giving reasons.
Bank Melli Iran, on the other hand, asserts in court that the termination is ineffective and argues that the services provided by Telekom Deutschland form the exclusive basis of the internal and external communication structures of the bank in Germany and are therefore essential for business activities.