Following US, EU lead, Canada announces end to Iran sanctions

Some are also concerned that a diplomatic incident could flare between Iran and the United States, undermining the nuclear deal, and that the 2016 USA presidential election might bring to power an opponent of the deal. President Hasan Rouhani called the deal a “golden page” and a “turning point” for the country’s economic prosperity, as he presented the draft budget to the Iranian parliament.

Carlos Tavares, chairman of the PSA Peugeot-Citroen managing board, announced the deal Thursday during a visit to France by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

The insurance contracts of some Iranian companies expire when the Persian calendar year ends in late March – similar to the January renewal season in Western countries – and they will be looking to strike new agreements.

But in fact, as Treasury Secretary Jack Lew has said, Iran will only receive about $55 billion in uncommitted frozen assets and those assets are just that, Iran’s own money that it has been denied access to because of sanctions.

The president of the Federation of German Industries, Ulrich Grillo, has said Iran’s need to modernizing its industrial infrastructure is large, and that German exports there could double in five years from 2.4 billion euros ($2.6 billion) a year now. Join the conversation at 19:30GMT.

However, some Iranians are hopeful that the nuclear deal will lead to full rapprochement between Iran and the West, particularly the United States.

Because of sanctions, Iran’s trade shifted in recent years from Europe toward Asia, and China in particular.

The problem Arab countries have with Iran is to do with religion. Still, several member nations of the European Union aren’t reciprocating, for now at least, because of legal questions about how soon they can resume doing business with Iran even though the sanctions regime has ended.

Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion said Canada intends to lift sanctions against Iran in the wake of its nuclear deal, potentially opening a lucrative new market for companies such as Montreal-based Bombardier Inc.

Kent said re-establishing relations with the country would put Canadian workers at risk because it is “selective” in the way it protects foreign missions.

According to University of Ottawa professor Thomas Juneau, an Iran expert and former official at Canada’s Department of National Defense, legislation introduced by the Harper government amounts to “booby-traps” that could trip the new government’s plans.

While saying that extremist violence must be condemned, the Iranian leader insisted that “all religions are to be respected, their books and the millions of people who follow the faith”. US officials say Tehran is supporting global efforts to arrange ceasefire talks in Yemen’s civil war (where Iran is backing Shia Muslim rebels against a government supported by its rival, Saudi Arabia).

Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the revolution, promised Iranians they would not pay for electricity or gas, and oil revenues would be sent directly to their homes.

Dion also signaled that Canada would look to open its embassy in Tehran, but said in French that it wouldn’t be the first step in restoring relations with the country.

European and Asian firms have a head start as some United States sanctions remain, tying the hands of American companies.