A senior council of Iranian clerics and lawyers on Wednesday approved implementing the landmark nuclear deal with world powers, sealing the final required step in the process despite hard-liners’ efforts to derail it.
Advertisement
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) speaks with Hossein Fereydoun (C), the brother of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif (R), before the Secretary and Foreign Minister addressed an global press corps gathered at the Austria Center in Vienna, Austria, July 14, 2015.
On Tuesday, hard-line lawmakers had sought to prevent its approval in parliament, but 161 lawmakers voted for implementing the nuclear deal, while 59 voted against it and 13 abstained.
The remaining articles laid emphasis on, among other things, cooperation and mutual respect between the two sides of the agreement, the administration’s mindfulness of the other party’s potential failure in removing the sanctions or its reversing them, and the prevention of access by the worldwide Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to military sites unless allowed by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC).
The legislation also requires the Iranian government to work toward the nuclear disarmament of Israel, which is thought to have the region’s only undeclared nuclear weapons arsenal.
The deal hammered out in July between Iran and the world powers after marathon negotiations places limits on Iran’s nuclear efforts and gradually reduces nuclear-related economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic. Despite the stances of officials in Iran’s government, who said Majlis vote would not be necessary for the implementation of the deal, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei left it for the parliament to decide on the fate of the deal.
The deal mandates that Iran begin shutting down parts of its nuclear program in coming weeks, including decommissioning thousands of centrifuges that refine uranium.
Despite the victory, Rouhani and his allies still face challenging times ahead. It didn’t disclose the location but said it was 500 meters (1,600 feet) underground. “We have so many bases that (our enemies) can not confront those bases, no matter how many bases they identify”.
Advertisement
White House spokesperson Josh Serious and he equally stated the problem was individual from the offer Iran hit with six earth forces, which attempts to suppress Tehranis nuclear plan in return in September.
