1st LD: Iranian president hails lift of U.S., EU sanctions

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday hailed the lift of nuclear-related sanctions imposed on Iran by the United States and the European Union (EU) after the U.N. nuclear watchdog confirmed Tehran's commitments to denuclearization.

"Congratulations on this dignity and victory as we have opened a new chapter in our relations with the world," Rouhani said in a statement carried by the official IRNA news agency.

"We have crossed a dangerous turn in economy" with the lift of "oppressive sanctions," the president said, noting that "today is a transition from the era of sanctions to development, which requires work, innovation, investment and seizing the opportunities by all the Iranians."

On Saturday, the International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Yukiya Amano said in a statement that Iran has completed the necessary preparatory steps to start the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), aimed at ensuring that Iran's nuclear program will be exclusively peaceful.

JCPOA was reached by the P5+1, namely Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States, the EU and Iran on July 14.

Shortly after the U.N. nuclear watchdog's announcement, the EU lifted its economic sanctions against Iran, and U.S. President Barack Obama also signed an executive order to lift sanctions on Iran related to its nuclear program, the White House said.

Iran, on the other hand, promises more transparency of its nuclear program, allowing the U.N. nuclear inspectors to monitor Tehran's atomic program.

The U.S. and EU sanctions on Tehran's disputed nuclear program in the past years had cut off the country's financial and economic ties with the international financial system and economic network. Endi