News Analysis: Iran strives for sanction-free era

Iran is striving to grasp the final opportunity to end all sanctions involving its nuclear program as talks entered a second overtime after missing another deadline on Tuesday, analysts say.

Iran's demand is to remove sanctions with the seal of the comprehensive deal, Iranian negotiator Abbas Araqchi said on Wednesday.

"Iran is like a runner with stones bound on his legs. Once sanctions are removed, Iran will finally be able to compete fairly," political analyst Sadeq Zibakalam said.

With large oil and gas reserves, Iran is widely seen as a potential key emerging market in the sluggish global economy, if sanctions can be lifted.

Araqchi said Wednesday that Iran and world powers have reached consensus on the removal of economic sanctions. Although his words are yet to be confirmed by other parties, sources in Vienna said the major issue stalling progress is the UN embargo of conventional weapons to Iran, especially missiles.

Iran insists the UN embargo on missiles and other conventional weapons to be lifted as they are Iran's rights and also irrelevant to the nuclear issue.

But Western powers say they are concerned that missiles may be used to carry nuclear warheads.

Some analysts believe the U.S.' real concern is that allowing Iran more weapons may threaten the U.S.' interest and allies in the region.

Iran is playing an increasingly more important role in regional affairs even with the burden of sanctions: Iran has helped the Syrian government, its key ally, quell insurgents; its military advisers fight alongside Iraqi government troops against Islamic State militia; pro-Iran Shiite groups are gaining momentum in Yemen, Lebanon and Bahrain.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration needs the deal to leave its foreign policy legacy, to facilitate the fight against terrorism in Middle East, to redirect resource for its strategy of pivoting to the Asia-Pacific region, said Mohammad Marandi, dean of Tehran University's school of international studies.

"The United States should agree to remove all UN Security Council and the U.S. nuclear sanctions. It is the only way to conclude a deal. If we retreat today, the embargoes will continue in the next generations in Iran," Marandi said.

Despite the contention of arms embargo, analysts believe the key issue for Iran is still economic sanctions. Iran is cut from the international swift transaction system, which prevents its banks from transferring and receiving money abroad; another key sanction is the embargo of Iranian oil and gas in the global market, which cut deeply into the oil-rich country's revenue.

Even the best talents and economic policies will be useless to contain soaring living costs and high unemployment, if the sanctions remain. The Iranian negotiators will try to take the opportunity to strike a deal by the end of the talks. "Iranians, including hardliners, know if a deal cannot be reached, the future of Iran will be bleak," Zibakalam said.

Iran and five United Nations Security Council permanent members plus Germany (P5+1) are after a long-term solution to the disputed Iranian nuclear issue. But they have entered a second overtime after missing the June 30 and July 7 deadlines.

The talks would continue for a "couple of days," as the negotiations entered the most difficult and sensitive part of the talks, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini told reporters in Vienna on Tuesday.

She said the deadline of the talks could be treated in a flexible way to give the negotiators more time to finalize the deal. Endit