From there to here: The future of Iran sanctions and oil
The 14 July agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme has set in motion a gradual easing of the West’s position towards Iran and begun the processes towards a dismantling of the sanctions enforced by the United States, the European Union and individual countries aligned with either the USA, the EU or both.(1) The ‘reopening’ of Iran, as it is being described in the West, has also raised questions of its potential...
Iran n-deal will ease sanctions burden on banks
The Iran nuclear deal likely will ease pressure on banks to watch out for any potential violations of international sanctions linked to that country, UK law firm Zaiwalla said [19 August 2015]. The plethora of sanctioned entities that banks have to avoid in order not to get punished by regulators has grown over the years. In the year to July 2015 alone, the number of sanctions imposed by the UK rose by 3% from 2,401 to 2,477. Similar...
Besieged bankers offered legal lifeline
Bankers worried over UK’s toughening stance toward financial offenders are offered a legal lifeline by a London law firm specialising in private prosecution service. The banking community was rocked by the sentencing 3 August 2015 of Tom Hayers, 35, for rigging the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor). The 14 years in jail handed down to the former UBS and Citigroup yen derivatives trader was seen by some City circles as too...
Turkey complicates the fight against ISIL
Turkish diplomatic and military moves are complicating the fight against Daesh aka Islamic State, ISIL or ISIS. Today (28 July 2015) Turkey is hoping to widen European/NATO support for its military offensive in Syria whose ultimate aim remains far from clear. The Turkish attacks in Syria are seen in the West as helping the fight against ISIL. From Kurdish standpoints these attacks are aimed at crushing the Kurds. Are the Turkish hits...
Iran nuclear deal: The view from IISS
Few nuclear agreements in the technology’s history have been so transformative for the protagonists as the Iran nuclear agreement. Not only has the 14 July 2015 deal plucked Iran out of international isolation (as perceived in the West, though Iran never was ostracised internationally as such) it has also brought the industrial world arrayed against it the promise, as Iran reopens to western business, of timely relief from its...
Some guys just wanna have nuclear fun
The return of Iran (did we miss it or did Iran?) to the international arena, wherever that is, and worse still Iran’s vindication of sorts in a cunningly crafted nuclear deal has sent some people aflutter. A bit like minarets and tall structures in the unlikeliest of places, everyone in the Middle East now wants to have a nuclear reactor — to start with, that is. It’s something to do with a perceived threat. As...