Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 7
By Elena Kosolapova - Trend:
An extension of the Iran Sanctions Act by the US does not, in itself, cause the nuclear deal to fail and will not cause Iran to pull out of the deal, Kenneth Katzman, senior analyst at the Congressional Research Service, which conducts research and analysis for the US Congress believes.
“The sanctions of the Act are still in a state of “waiver,” which means that there is no change in the actual application of sanctions if Mr. Obama signs the extension into law,” Katzman told Trend.
Iran and the P5+1 (China, France, Russia, UK, US plus Germany) reached a nuclear deal (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) in July, 2015. Under the agreement, Iran agreed to eliminate its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium, cut its stockpile of low-enriched uranium by 98 percent, and reduce by about two-thirds the number of its gas centrifuges for 13 years.
The agreement provides that in return for verifiably abiding by its commitments, Iran will receive relief from US, EU, and UN Security Council nuclear-related economic sanctions.
Last week the US Senate voted to extend the president’s authority to impose sanctions on Iran for another decade, which was first introduced in 1996 to punish investments in Iran's energy industry based on accusations that Tehran was pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program. The measure should be signed by outgoing President Barack Obama to come into force.
Katzman noted that analysts are still waiting for a clear decision from the new Administration about what its stance on the sanctions and the nuclear deal will be.
“As long as the sanctions remain “waived,” the Iranian economy would not be affected,” he said.
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