Hassan Rouhani: Iran's Sanctions Will Be Lifted by the End of 2015

Hassan Rouhani, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, stated that sanctions against Iran will be lifted by the end of 2015, and Mohammad Javad Zarif also announced December as the time for closing Iran's nuclear file. On Tuesday, November 5, during a meeting with Eduardo Lopez Busquets, the new Spanish ambassador in Tehran, Rouhani said, "According to the plans, the unjust sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran will be lifted by the end of 2015." He noted that "many European and Asian companies are currently strengthening their presence and participation in Iran's economic projects" and urged Spanish economic actors not to fall behind their competitors. Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, also stated that "December is the time predicted for closing the file. It is expected that by then all work will be completed, which will be referred to as the implementation day of the JCPOA." While Rouhani claims that sanctions will be lifted by the end of 2015, multiple steps must be completed before reaching the "implementation day" of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Iran says it is waiting for the International Atomic Energy Agency's report on December 15 to finalize actions it is obligated to take under the JCPOA. This report relates to Iran's "past and present actions," previously referred to as the potential military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program (PMD). Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, also referred to this issue in his letter dated October 21, stating that closing the PMD file is a prerequisite for the implementation of the JCPOA. Once Iran's actions and the Agency's report to the Board of Governors are completed, the path will be opened for finalizing Iran's actions under the JCPOA. Iran had previously announced that it would prepare the ground for finalizing these actions and will await the Agency's report on December 15. After this date, Iran must take necessary actions, including collecting part of the centrifuges and finalizing changes that need to be made to the Arak heavy water reactor, after which the International Atomic Energy Agency will again need to confirm Iran's actions as a monitor of the agreement between Iran and the P5+1. With the Agency's confirmation, Iran and the six global powers will reach the implementation day of the agreement, on which day the sanctions that they agreed to lift will be removed. According to the JCPOA, which was agreed upon on July 14 of this year between Iran and the six global powers, Tehran will halt many of its nuclear activities, and in return, international sanctions against Iran will be lifted or suspended. According to Reuters, the implementation process of the JCPOA is a four to six-month process, while the Iranian President insists on lifting sanctions by the end of December - two months from now. The Vienna agreement became more complicated with Ayatollah Khamenei's letter on October 21 to Rouhani, in which he outlined nine conditions and requirements for its implementation. He stated that any comments from officials of the negotiating countries regarding maintaining the "structure of sanctions" would be considered a "violation" of the Vienna nuclear agreement. The leader of Iran called for "strong and sufficient guarantees" from the U.S. and Europe for lifting sanctions, including a written declaration from the U.S. President and the European Union regarding the lifting of sanctions. Ali Akbar Velayati, the leader's advisor on international affairs, also warned in statements published by ISNA on Tuesday that "the continuation of the leader's support for the JCPOA is conditional on considering his warnings in the letter addressed to the President."