(Newswire.net — January 17, 2016) –The decision to lift the sanctions, which was agreed upon by the 28 member states of the European Union has not yet been, but is due to be published soon in the Official Journal of the EU to enter into force, according to AFP.
Vice-President of the European Commission Federica Mogherini has confirmed an agreement on the abolition of national and multilateral economic sanctions on Iran, Reuters reported.
On Saturday, US President Barack Obama also signed an executive order to lift sanctions on Iran after Tehran fulfilled the requirements of the nuclear deal with the world powers, which was announced by the White House, according to Reuters.
Obama said that Iran’s fulfillment of the agreement marks a fundamental change in the situation regarding the Iranian nuclear program.
For the United States to lift all sanctions against Iran imposed three and a half decades ago, it must pass a resolution in the US Congress.
Iran has been under military and economic sanctions from the US, the UN and the EU for the past 35 years because of support to terrorist organizations, human rights issues, and as a way to stop Iran’s nuclear program.
The first presidential executive order in the United States was signed by former President Jimmy Carter in 1979, at the peak of the hostage crisis in Tehran. The policy was continued by the presidents after him, including Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
The European Union had also imposed sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program in 2006. In 2010, EU imposed sanctions banning investment in Iran’s energy sector and imposed an embargo on oil and gas and many others financial constraints.
In 2006, the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program and froze the assets of companies and individuals associated with it. Subsequently, in 2007 and 2008 the UN Security Council imposed an embargo on export of arms and travel restrictions for people who are under the sanctions.