United States Lifts Iran’s Nuclear-Related Sanctions on January 16

ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images

United States Lifts Iran’s Nuclear-Related Sanctions on January 16

Iran’s economy is ‘on the runway, ready to take off.’

On January 16, the United States accepted the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (iaea) verification that Iran had implemented the necessary requirements for the removal of past nuclear-related sanctions. As a result, billions of dollars will flood into the Iranian economy, which had been struggling with sanctions.

“Today, as a result of the actions taken since last July … the entire world [is] safer because the threat of the nuclear weapon has been reduced,” Secretary of State John Kerry said.

Gross domestic product, which had averaged below zero percent in the past 4 years, is predicted to rise to 6 percent.

The most significant effects of lifting the sanctions are:

  • Around $90 billion of frozen or blocked foreign assets will be made available to Iran.
  • Crude oil exports previously limited at 1.1 million barrels per day are estimated to nearly double.
  • Foreign firms will be allowed to invest in Iran’s oil, gas and automobile sectors.
  • Iran’s restriction of using the global banking system will be released.
  • “We are like a pilot on the runway ready to take off. This is how the whole country is right now,” Iran’s deputy oil minister for planning and supervision, Mansour Moazami, said.

    The next day, new sanctions were established, preventing 11 entities and individuals linked to Iran’s missile program from using the U.S. banking system. The sanctions came a month after complaints of the White House’s delay in responding to Iran’s violation of a United Nations resolution regarding its ballistic missile development.

    The Trumpet staff watches January 16 closely each year (read “Keeping an Eye on January 16 and 17” to find out why). For the full implications of the Iran deal and the lifting of sanctions, listen to Trumpet Daily Radio Show host Stephen Flurry’s program below.