World leaders hailed the implementation of the deal, and the subsequent lifting of European and us sanctions, as a milestone in worldwide diplomacy.
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During his speech, the president also said that a fifth US citizen student, Matthew Trevithick, imprisoned by Iran was released as well separately Saturday.
Kerry also confirmed a report by The Washington Post that the flight out of Iran of Rezaian and two of the other Americans was delayed because of a mix-up over the fate of Rezaian’s wife Yeganeh.
Obama described the release of six Iranian-Americans and one Iranian charged in the United States as a “reciprocal, humanitarian gesture” that was a one-time event.
A Swiss plane took Jason Rezaian, the Washington Post’s Tehran bureau chief; Saeed Abedini, a pastor from Idaho; and Amir Hekmati, a former U.S. Marine from Flint, Michigan, as well as some family members, from Tehran to Geneva, Switzerland. “And we are going to remain vigilant about it”, he said. The Iranian president also said the deal was a “turning point” for Iran’s economy, which was severely weakened by having been shut out of global markets for the last five years.
“Any action will be met by a reaction”, he said.
Tensions have persisted however, with the US Treasury on Sunday announcing new sanctions on individuals and companies in connection with Iran’s ballistic missile programme.
“We achieved this through diplomacy without resorting to another war in the Middle East”, he said in an address to the nation.
“For decades”, he said, “our differences meant our governments nearly never spoke – ultimately, that did not advance America’s interests”. This is especially so for the Iranian leadership which has to abandon its nuclear ambition that was one of the rallying cries of the hardliners.
From the future of U.S.-Iranian relations to the fate of another missing American, the release could mark just the beginning of more political maneuvering to come.
Rouhani noted that Iranian companies could now start trade and export activities through normal channels with more facilities. Benchmark Brent crude closed below $29 (£20.3) on Friday.
“We have seen the results”, he said.
They include slashing by two-thirds its uranium centrifuges, reducing its stockpile of uranium – which before the deal, was enough for several bombs – and removing the core of its Arak reactor, which could have given Iran weapons-grade plutonium.
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But Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said: “Iran’s support of terror, a strong inspections regime, Iran’s human rights and religious freedom violations, and the United States’ standing in the world remain uppermost in our minds, as is ensuring Israel’s security.”.
