Obama heralds Iran nuclear deal, release of prisoners

Hardline newspapers Kayhan and Vatan-e-Emrooz splashed the news on their front pages, crowding out a triumphal speech by President Hassan Rouhani, who on Sunday hailed the lifting of the nuclear sanctions.

More than $30 billion in assets overseas will become immediately available to the Islamic Republic. The U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, certified Iran had fulfilled its obligations under a nuclear agreement with six world powers.

“We also extend our heartfelt congratulations to the friendly and neighborly people of Iran on the occasion of this achievement and remain assured that this positive process will give an additional impetus to further development of mutually beneficial partnership between Azerbaijan and Iran”, the statement said.

The U.S. and European nations lifted most of their sanctions on Iran for giving up plans to develop nuclear weapons, six months after landmark agreements were reached with the Middle Eastern country.

“There was no benefit to the US dragging this out”, Obama said.

The prisoner swap came after more than a year of secret negotiations, the officials said.

Kerry had been raising the status of detained Americans in all of his nuclear-related talks with Iran’s Zarif. In exchange, the USA has released seven Iranian prisoners.

Obama said Iran has a vibrant culture that has so much to contribute to the world in commerce, science and the arts, but “your government’s threats and actions to destabilize your region have isolated Iran from much of the world”. Tehran was obliged to cut drastically the number of centrifuges it uses in nuclear research programmes, as well as dismantle a heavy-water reactor in Arak, which could potentially help Iran to build a military nuclear device “within weeks”. He said that there’s no obstacle for American businesses to come and invest here.

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan said the Emad missile was a conventional weapon.

A fifth American, Matthew Trevithick, was also released by Iran, though his release was not part of the negotiated prisoner swap.

While U.S. officials say Iran will only pocket about $50 billion of those assets after legal claims, the announcement of this new settlement could add fuel to the fire for critics who say the U.S.is funding a destructive regime.

“It is an important day for the global community”. How do you see this moment unfolding in Iran?

A charter plane with the Americans has left Tehran for Switzerland, Xinhua reported.

“Yesterday these families finally got the news they’d been waiting for”, he said referring to the USA nationals who have been released by Iran.

Iran meanwhile remains a staunch backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad, putting it at odds with the US and Sunni Arab powers including Saudi Arabia, even as it shares the West’s interest in defeating the Islamic State group.

“A convergence of factors explains it”, says Emile Hokayem, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

The Obama administration also agreed to drop charges against 14 other Iranians outside the country.

“With Iran, there was an opportunity for a deal”.

FILE – In this video frame grab image made from the Iranian broadcaster IRIB TV, U.S. citizen Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, accused by Iran of spying for the Central Intelligence Agency, sits in Tehran’s revolutionary court, in Iran, Dec. 27, 2011. “Iran is a competent actor”.