US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday that Washington will not stand in the way of a system that Europeans are developing to shield companies dealing with Iran from US sanctions, so long as the focus is on providing humanitarian and other permitted goods, AP reported. 

According to him, the US does not take issue with the development of the system known as INSTEX, so long as it deals with the trade of goods not subject to sanctions, as the Europeans contend it will.

As the US stepped up sanctions against Iran, and companies are withdrawing business from Iran, the Europeans developed INSTEX, a complex barter-type system that allows them to bypass direct financial transactions with Iran and thus avoid possible US sanctions. The system is not yet running, but Europe hopes it will work this summer.