Since the European Union and the United States on Saturday announced the lifting of their nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, members of the international community have been voicing their opinions about the historic event.
The White House hailed the historic deal, saying it is the best solution available to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon without taking military action.
“Now that Iran’s actions have been verified, it can begin to receive relief from certain nuclear sanctions and gain access to its own money that had been frozen. And perhaps most important of all, we’ve achieved this historic progress through diplomacy, without resorting to another war in the Middle East,” said U.S. President Barack Obama on the deal’s implementation day.
However, the United States stressed that it will only lift its nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, and on the same day the Treasury Department announced that the country will impose sanctions on 11 Iranians and their agencies for alleged involvement in developing Iran’s ballistic missile program.
Syrian daily newspaper “Al-Watan” said Iran’s return to the international community will mark the beginning of a new era in the Middle East, alter the world’s attitude toward the region and bring prosperity to Iran.
Members of the opposition Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) have also been keeping up with the event, saying that the lifting of sanctions will boost efforts to end the Syrian crisis.
“This [lifting of sanctions on Iran] has a positive effect on Syria. The lifting of sanctions will help to ease Iran’s relations with Europe and the United States, which will strike those who are trying to escalate regional situations and bring all parties to negotiate solutions to all problems. If every country could sit at the negotiating table, we would be able to find solutions,” said Tarek Ahmed, a member of the SSNP.
Analysts from neighboring Iraq held that the removal of sanctions will contribute to stability in the Middle East and fighting against terrorism in Iraq.
“I think it [the lifting of sanctions on Iran] will play a positive role for regional stability. Iran’s entrance into the global situation will ease regional conflicts and aggregate anti-terrorism forces, which will improve the security situation in Iraq. Although in the short term, it is without a doubt difficult to achieve a stable Iraqi situation, the lifting of sanctions on Iran will be beneficial for Iraq in the long run,” said Wathiq Al-Hashimi, an Iraqi political analyst.
Some experts, however, said the lifting of sanctions could complicate the political situation in the Middle East, as Iran’s ability to introduce foreign capital and possibly experience an economic boom could upset the current balance of power between the Sunni and the Shia groups, and increase contradictions between the two sides.
In addition to transforming the global political landscape, the lifting of sanctions has already had economic impacts. Stock markets in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia both dived over 6 percent within the first hour of opening on Sunday.
Economists blamed the stock market falls on concerns from Gulf oil producers that Iran will export large amount of petroleum, worsening an already sluggish oil market.
The EU and the United States announced their decision to lift nuclear-related sanctions on Iran after the UN nuclear watchdog on Saturday confirmed Tehran’s commitments to the July deal. (CCTV/Reuters)