Rouhani: We Achieved All Our Goals with the Vienna Nuclear Agreement

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, stated in a televised speech to the Iranian people shortly after the announcement of the Vienna nuclear agreement that with the declaration of the agreement, all of Iran's goals regarding the lifting of sanctions and restrictions and the continuation of nuclear activities within the country have been achieved. In this speech, which was broadcast live on the state television news network, Rouhani said that over the past 23 months, Iran has pursued four goals in nuclear negotiations with six world powers, aiming to ensure that capabilities, technology, and nuclear activities continue domestically, that the 'wrong, unjust, and inhumane' sanctions against Iran are lifted, that the Security Council resolutions deemed 'illegal' by Iran are removed, and that Iran's nuclear file is taken out of the scope of 'Chapter Seven of the UN Charter' and the Security Council. The Iranian President described the fulfillment of these four goals as the achievement of the agreement between Iran and the six world powers in Vienna. The negotiations between Iran and the 5+1 group finally concluded on Tuesday, July 14, after 23 months of intense discussions since Rouhani took office, and under the comprehensive final agreement, international sanctions against Iran will be lifted in exchange for limiting Iran's nuclear program. Rouhani also highlighted the political and economic measures that facilitated the achievement of the Vienna agreement, stating that at the beginning of the recent negotiations, inflation in Iran exceeded 40% and economic growth was negative six percent. 'Controlling inflation and achieving positive economic growth' was the strongest message the eleventh government sent to the negotiating countries in the 5+1 group. According to Rouhani, during the 23 months of negotiations, especially the recent 18 days of continuous talks, extraordinary efforts were made by diplomats, lawyers, economists, and nuclear scientists to achieve Iran's goals from these negotiations. He noted that while the opposing side initially considered the operation of 100 centrifuges during the eight-year limitation period for Iran, this number gradually increased, and ultimately the world powers accepted that during the limitation period, more than 6,000 centrifuges, including 1,000 centrifuges in Fordow, would be operational, and the active centrifuges in Natanz would continue enriching uranium. However, he did not mention the level of enrichment of the active centrifuges in Natanz. The Iranian President also stated that the world powers initially considered a 45-year limitation on Iran's nuclear activities, but this was gradually reduced to 30 years, then 10 years, and finally to 8 years. He added that while Iran was initially seeking research and development of IR6 and IR8 centrifuges, the opposing side believed that research and development on IR1 was feasible, but 'ultimately they stated that IR8 was no longer feasible.' Rouhani further mentioned that 'the joint agreement explicitly refers to the heavy water reactor in Arak, and the Arak reactor will be completed with the same heavy water nature and the characteristics outlined in the agreement.' Regarding the lifting of sanctions, the Iranian President said that 'they said it would never be possible to lift all sanctions at once, and it must happen step by step, and it would take months for us to build trust. Then, gradually, sanctions would not be lifted but suspended, and later, if the agency provided a positive report, we would also be assured that sanctions would be lifted step by step.' Rouhani added, 'Today, I announce to the noble nation of Iran that according to the Vienna agreement, all sanctions, even those related to arms, missiles, and proliferation, will be lifted as stated in the resolution, and all economic sanctions, including financial, banking, insurance, transportation, petrochemical, and precious metals sanctions, will be completely lifted, and even the arms sanctions will be set aside.' He noted that with the implementation of the Vienna agreement, 'for five years, a kind of limitation will be established, and after that, the sanctions will be completely lifted.' The Iranian President further stated that 'the implementation of the agreement marks the beginning of a test, and if the agreement is implemented carefully and well, the step-by-step implementation can remove the bricks of the wall of distrust.' Rouhani added that 'this is a mutual agreement. We tested the final agreement in Geneva. If they adhere to the agreement, we will also adhere to it.' Regarding the timeline for implementing the agreement, he said, 'Today, seven countries reached an agreement on the text of the agreement and its five annexes. The next step is that in the coming days, the text of the agreement and the Security Council text will go to the UN Security Council and be approved there, and this approval will be under Article 25 and not under Chapter Seven.' Rouhani added that 'after that, the agreement has stages and must continue in the countries, and after this stage is completed, on the day that is called the day of the agreement, the agreement will be implemented. Today is the day of the joint statement, the day of finalization, the day of approval in the UN Security Council, and after about two months, the day of the agreement will be the day when the lifting of all sanctions is explicitly announced.' He also announced that on the day of the agreement, Iran's actions will begin. These actions will start with the lifting of all sanctions, which will also take time and may take more than two months.'