Iran's Nuclear Programme Deal Thursday April 02,2015

 

The United States, Iran and five other world powers have sealed a breakthrough framework agreement outlining limits on Iran's nuclear programme to keep it from being able to produce atomic weapons

The agreement envisages the Fordow facility being converted into a nuclear physics center with no fissile material. It was agreed that the Natantz facility would remain as the only uranium enrichment complex in the country. Under the deal Tehran was obliged to refrain from creating nuclear weapons.

 

The deal will limit Iran's nuclear activity to the Natanz plant and reduce the number of centrifuges it operates from 19,000 today to just over 6,104

Iran has also agreed to not build any new facilities for the purpose of enriching uranium for 15 years

Sanctions related to Iran's nuclear programmes would be suspended by the US, the United Nations and the European Union after the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed Iran's compliance.

The US and Iran each hailed the efforts of their diplomats over eight days of marathon talks in Swiss city of Lausanne

Speaking at the White House, US President Barack Obama called it a "good deal" that would address concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions. The US president said that the US and its allies had "reached a historic understanding with Iran"

US Secretary of State John Kerry said the agreement in Lausanne was a "solid foundation for a good deal".


Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called it a "win-win outcome"

The prospect of a deal which leaves Iran with any capacity whatsoever to build a bomb has alarmed Israel and Iran's neighbours in the Gulf.

Iran believes Israel should not exist. Israel sees a nuclear Iran as a major threat to it and the wider world. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly warned against "a very bad deal", saying Iran should not be left with a single centrifuge.

Saudi Arabia, the main Sunni power and regional rival to Shia Iran, also fears a compromise deal will not stop Iran eventually getting a nuclear bomb. Saudi Arabia also worries that an end to sanctions will embolden and strengthen Iran economically and militarily.

Both Israel and Saudi Arabia, the US' key allies in the region, feel Washington is putting a deal with Iran before their security needs

 

The UN, EU and several individual countries have imposed sanctions in an attempt to prevent Iran from developing military nuclear capability

UN sanctions included:

• A ban on the supply of heavy weaponry and nuclear-related technology to Iran
• A block on arms exports
• An asset freeze on key individuals and companies.

The EU also imposed its own sanctions, among them:

• Restrictions on trade in equipment which could be used for uranium enrichment
• An asset freeze on a list of individuals and organisations that the EU believed were helping advance the nuclear programme, and a ban on them entering the EU
• A ban on any transactions with Iranian banks and financial institutions
• Ban on the import, purchase and transport of Iranian crude oil and natural gas - the EU had previously accounted for 20% of Iran's oil exports. European companies were also stopped from insuring Iranian oil shipments.

Japan and South Korea have also imposed sanctions similar to those of the EU

 

The US sanctions prohibit almost all trade with Iran, making some exceptions only for activity "intended to benefit the Iranian people", including the export of medical and agricultural equipment, humanitarian assistance and trade in "informational" materials such as films.

 

Effect of the Sanctions on Iran

As a result of the EU embargo and the US sanctions targeting other major importers, Iran's oil exports had fallen to 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) by May 2013, compared with an average 2.2 million bpd in 2011