Tehran (AsiaNews) - The Iranian parliament has approved the nuclear deal signed in July 2015 with the US, the UK, France, China, Russia and Germany. The news was reported by the official Irna news agency, and picked up by all local media. The Majlis (Islamic Consultative Assembly) has stressed, however, that international inspectors "will have limited access" to Iranian military sites.
The agreement passed with 161 votes in favor, 59 against and 13 abstentions. During the debate, the tone remained tense, with fringe conservatives accusing President Rouhani of "selling out" the dignity of the country.
For his part, the president defended the deal saying that it was "the only way to save the future of our nuclear program while saving our economy", devastated by the sanctions imposed by the United States after the Revolution led by Khomeini in 1979 and the crisis of 'US embassy in Tehran.
However, the vote in the US Congress is likely to be more bumpy than in Iran. To remove the sanctions - which affect large sections of the civilian population while encouraging the Pasdaran, who run all smuggling in the country - a unanimous vote is needed. In September, during the first attempt to vote, the Republicans submitted a no confidence motion that Democrats managed to avoid at the last minute. Waiting for the next set of discussions on the topic.
The agreement approved by the Majlis provides for the withdrawal of international sanctions against Iran, and the commitment made to Tehran in order to "build confidence" on the peaceful nature of its nuclear program. In case of violations, sanctions will be reintroduced within 65 days.
The other embargo against the Middle Eastern country, sanctioned by the UN and that concerns only the sale of weapons, will remain in force for five years, while sanctions that hinder the purchase of missiles will last for another eight years. In a period of 10 years, Iran should reduce the number of nuclear centrifuges by about two-thirds, from about 19 thousand to just over 6 thousand, in line with that outlined by the agreement as early as April last year.
