Under the nuclear deal…Iran will not get its hands on a nuclear bomb. “And we are going to remain vigilant about it. We’re not going to waver in the defense of our security or that of our allies and partners”, Obama said in a televised statement on Sunday morning from the White House.
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The United States yesterday imposed sanctions over Iran’s ballistic missile testing even as President Barack Obama hailed the release of five Americans from Tehran’s custody and the implementation of a nuclear deal he hopes will stand among his lasting foreign policy achievements.
Rowhani said earlier Sunday that Iran had regained access to more than USD$ 100 billion (363.9 billion baht) in frozen assets. A fifth American, student Matthew Trevithick, who had been detained in Iran for roughly 40 days, was released separately. “The Iranian government has implemented its pledges pertaining to economic promises and is committed to do so”, President Rouhani said, vowing to raise the GDP from the current three percent to 5% in the next year. The Post and the USA government have denied the accusations, as has Rezaian.
The family of an Iranian American reporter who spent more than a year behind bars is thanking USA lawmakers and the journalism community for assisting in the chain of events which lead to his release.
“They’re civilians, and their release is a one-time gesture to Iran given the unique opportunity offered by this moment and the larger circumstances at play”, Obama said.
After the nuclear agreement between Iran and the world powers in July 2015, a number of Western officials and business delegations have visited Iran for post-sanction cooperation.
Within the framework of the nuclear negotiations, a less hostile relationship developed between the U.S. and Iran following decades of acrimony, especially through the personal contacts of U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry and his Iranian counterpart, Javad Zarif. Iran also agreed to work to locate American Robert Levinson, who vanished during a trip to Iran in 2007.
The global sanctions imposed on Iran with regard to its nuclear program have been removed as the JCPOA entered the implementation phase on January 16.
The restrictions aim to increase the time Iran would need to make enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon from several months to a year.
In his first comments since the deal took effect, Iran’s highest authority made clear that Washington should still be treated with suspicion.
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In swapping the prisoners, the Obama administration has come under criticism among Republicans and others for appearing to exchange innocents for convicted criminals.
