IAEA head in Tehran to meet with Pres. Rouhani

“If Iran tries to cheat, if they try to build a bomb covertly, we will stop them”. At issue was money used by Iran to buy military equipment from the USA before the break in ties between the countries.

Earlier on Sunday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a speech to the Iranian people that the country had entered a “new chapter” in its history.

Iran had set up a $400 million trust fund for such purchases, which was frozen along with diplomatic relations in 1979.

Among the Americans released was Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, who was held in Iran for a year and a half. This despite the fact that Iran’s neighbors Pakistan, Russia and Saudi Arabia all have such missiles and Israeli and United States missiles can also reach Tehran.

“In constructive bilateral discussions, we arrived at a fair settlement to this claim, which due to litigation risk, remains in the best interest of the United States”, Kerry said.

On Saturday, the USA released or dropped charges against seven Iranians either convicted or accused of helping Iran avoid the longstanding sanctions in exchange for Iran’s release of five Americans.

“Iran will respond to such (U.S.) acts of propaganda and harassment by seriously continuing its missile program and enhancing its defensive capabilities and national security”, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hossein Jaber Ansari said at his weekly press briefing.

Hingham native and Boston University graduate Matthew Trevithick was among the freed US captives, though officials said his release was not part of the prisoner swap.

 The new sanctions announced Sunday target companies in Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates as well as six Iranian individuals and one Chinese citizen.

On Saturday, Obama signed an executive order to lift sanctions on Iran after global inspectors concluded that Iran has dismantled large parts of its nuclear programme as promised. “We’ve achieved this historic progress through diplomacy without resorting to another war in the Middle East”, the president said in a rare Sunday public statement.

Iran’s missiles are not designed in any way to carry nuclear warheads and therefore the country’s missile program does not contravene any worldwide regulations, the statement went on to say.