Iran deal closer to reality as US issues sanctions memo

The United States approved conditional sanctions waivers for Iran on Sunday, though it cautioned that they would not take effect until Tehran has curbed its nuclear programme as required under a historic nuclear deal reached in Vienna on July 14th.

"I hereby direct you to take all necessary steps to give effect to the US commitments with respect to sanctions" on Iran, President Barack Obama said in a memo to the secretaries of state, treasury, commerce and energy which was released by the White House press office.

Several senior US officials, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity, said actual implementation of the deal was still at least two months away.

Sunday was “adoption day” for the deal, which came 90 days after the UN Security Council endorsed the agreement reached by Iran, the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China under which most sanctions on Iran would be lifted in exchange for limits being imposed on Tehran’s nuclear activities.

"Iran will now begin taking all of the necessary steps outlined in the deal to restrain its nuclear programme and ensure that it is exclusively peaceful going forward," secretary of state John Kerry said in a statement. "These waivers will not take effect until Implementation Day, after Iran has completed all necessary nuclear steps, as verified by the IAEA."

European action

The European Union also published legal acts that open the way for the bloc to lift sanctions if Tehran meets the conditions in the landmark agreement.

“The EU today adopted the legislative framework for lifting all of its nuclear-related economic and financial sanctions,” EU high representative for foreign affairs Federica Mogherini and Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif said in a joint statement.

In Vienna, Iran told the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Sunday it would fulfil a commitment under the deal to implement the additional protocol to its Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, allowing UN nuclear inspectors more intrusive access to Iranian facilities.

Iran will take that step on “implementation day”, the IAEA said in a statement. Under the deal, that is when the agency is due to have verified that Tehran has implemented restrictions on its nuclear activities and sanctions should be lifted.

Vienna meeting

Mr Kerry said under secretary of state for political affairs Tom Shannon and the US point-man on Iran, Stephen Mull, would join senior officials from the six powers, Iran and the European Union in Vienna this week to discuss implementation of the deal.

In addition to Washington’s conditional orders to suspend US nuclear-related sanctions, US officials said the United States, China and Iran were re-emphasising their commitment to the redesign and reconstruction of the Arak research reactor so that it does not produce plutonium.

The fate of the Arak reactor was one of the toughest sticking points in the nearly two years of negotiations that led to the July agreement.

Other steps Iran must take include reducing the number of uranium-enrichment centrifuges it has in operation, cutting its enriched uranium stocks and answering UN questions about past activities that the West suspects were linked to work on nuclear weapons.

Mr Kerry noted that the IAEA had already said Iran had met its obligation to provide answers and access to the agency.

However, one US official suggested on Saturday that the quality of answers Iran might have provided to the IAEA was not relevant when it came to deciding whether to press forward with sanctions relief on implementation day.

Tehran denies allegations from Western powers and their allies that its nuclear programme was aimed at developing the capability to produce atomic weapons.

Today, political directors of the six world powers and Iran, as well as the European Union, will hold a first meeting to monitor implementation of Iran’s commitments. – (Reuters)