Iran nuclear deal debate: How much does Tehran benefit?
WASHINGTON – The formal start of the landmark deal to restrain Iran’s nuclear program drew clashing statements from Iran and the Obama administration about how much of a boost the temporary accord would give Iran’s battered economy.
Iran’s leaders, eager to sell the temporary accord to their population, said the agreement would open the way to a surge of trade and investment. U.S. officials, facing criticism that the deal is too lenient, insisted that the temporary sanctions relief was chicken feed and that crippling restrictions on Iran’s economy remain.
Following implementation of the deal, “the window of opportunity for Iran’s trade with Europe will increase tenfold,” Abbas Araqchi, Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, told the semi-official Islamic Republic News Agency. “The private sector of Iran will have a great share of trade with the European Union.”
Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran's nuclear agency, said the deal was a victory on two key points, because it marked the beginning of the end of sanctions while allowing Iran to continue low-level nuclear enrichment.
"The iceberg of sanctions is melting while our centrifuges are also still working," he said on state television. "This is our greatest achievement."
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