The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) verified this past week that Iran has completed the necessary cutbacks to its nuclear program. This has come as a result of the historic nuclear deal that was struck between the E3/EU+3 and Iran in Vienna on July 14, 2015. The IAEA has stated that Iran reportedly fulfilled key commitments as part of the deal to have international sanctions removed.
Approximately $100 billion dollars in assets, in addition to increased access to global markets is now available for the Iranian government.
In a statement on Jan. 12, 2016, American President Barack Obama said that the deal and the actions taken by Iran were a result of strong diplomacy.
Besides the impact that the removal of sanctions will have on world markets, it is important to note the changes that Iran has made to its nuclear program. Under the agreement, Iran is only allowed to use nuclear power for energy and medical purposes.
In order to construct nuclear weapons, Iran would need uranium and centrifuges to refine the element for weaponization. Some of the most essential changes to the program include the reduction of Iran’s uranium stockpile by 98 per cent.
Iran must also shut down most of its 20,000 centrifuges. The agreement permits Iran to maintain approximately 6,000 centrifuges for the next 10 years. The deal also allows the IAEA to be on the ground to monitor Iran’s nuclear facilities, to ensure that the nation fulfills their part of the deal.
The main focus of the deal was to make it harder for Iran to obtain the materials needed to build a nuclear bomb. Before the deal, Iran would have been able to construct several nuclear bombs between two to three months. Under the new deal, it would take Iran a year to assemble the parts for a nuclear bomb, assuming that the IAEA is unable to discover the development first.
The Iranian nuclear program can be traced back to the 1950s. For years, the United States suspected that Iran planned to use its nuclear program to build weaponry; as a result, crippling sanctions were placed on Iran.
In terms of Iranian and North American relations, the nuclear deal and removal of sanctions demonstrates another historic step in the right direction.
“This deal offers an opportunity to move in a new direction,” said President Obama in a July 14, 2015 press conference. “We should seize it.