US political parties argue about Iran

Baku, Azerbaijan, April 27 By Aygun Badalova – Trend: It is too early to talk about the impact of the West’s lifting sanctions from Iran, in particular, on the global oil market, the director of the Russian National Energy Institute Sergey Pravosudov said in an interview with Trend April 27. He does not believe that the sanctions against Iran will be lifted in the near future. “The negotiating sides have contradictions on this issue,” he said. “The US stands for the gradual lifting of the sanctions. But as a condition for signing a final agreement on the nuclear program, Iran calls for lifting the sanctions at once.” "So, I would not say that we will see lifting of sanctions in the coming days," he said. He said that Iran has greatly strengthened its positions in Iraq, Yemen, Syria and Lebanon. "The country began to play a dominant role in the Middle East,” he said. “Of course, the US’s allies, especially Saudi Arabia and Israel, do not like this.” The expert said that the US political parties have different opinions about further actions towards Iran. Pravosudov said that one party – the Democrats – stick to the transition from the “whip method” to the “cake method” with regard to Iran, i.e. a phased lifting of sanctions, and hoping that there will be more US-friendly regime in the country. “The second party - the Republicans – believes that it is necessary to continue the pressure on Iran and not to make any concessions. And if Barack Obama were to sign any agreement, the Congress, dominated by Republicans, would not approve it,” he said. “Therefore, now it is too early to talk about any progressive steps and analyze their consequences,” the expert said. The P5+1 and Iran signed a framework agreement in Lausanne on April 2. They agreed that two-thirds of Iran’s uranium enrichment capacities would be suspended for 10 years. Iran will also be obliged to bring all its uranium enrichment programs under international control for 25 years. The EU will lift the sanctions against Iran if the country fulfils the reached agreements. The US said sanctions against Iran will be removed as Tehran implements its obligations. The preparation of a comprehensive agreement is to be completed by June 30. A possible lifting of sanctions, as many analysts expect, will allow the country to bring oil production to presanction levels. However, the analysts of the British consulting company, Capital Economics, believe that, even if it a final agreement is signed on Iran’s nuclear program, it is unlikely that this year there will be a significant amount of additional Iranian oil in the global market. Edited by CN --- Follow the author on Twitter: @AygunBadalova Follow us on Twitter @TRENDNewsAgency