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- Starts 1979: The Iranian Revolution of 1979 followed by a hostage crisis led the the United States to impose an asset freeze and trade embargo against Iran.
- New sanctions in 1987: While those sanctions were later lifted, the United States imposed new sanctions in 1987 after Iran's actions against shipping in the Persian Gulf and support of international terrorism.
- Expanded in 1995: The sanctions were expanded in 1995 to include firms dealing with the Iranian government.
- UN SC Resolution 1696, in 2006: In 2006, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1696 and imposed sanctions after Iran refused to suspend its uranium enrichment program. U.S. sanctions initially targeted investments in oil, gas, and petrochemicals, exports of refined petroleum products, and business dealings with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
- People have paid the price: Over the years, sanctions have taken a serious toll on Iran's economy and people. Since 1979, the US has led international efforts to use sanctions to influence Iran's policies, including Iran's uranium enrichment program, which Western governments fear is intended for developing the capability to produce nuclear weapons. Iran counters that its nuclear program is for civilian purposes.
- 1979 November: The United States imposes sanctions after Iranian students storm the US Embassy in Tehran and take diplomats hostage. Iranian imports to the United States are banned and $12 billion in Iranian assets are frozen.
- 1984 January: The US Department of State designates Iran a state sponsor of terrorism for repeatedly providing “support for acts of international terrorism.” The designation brings with it sweeping US sanctions.
- 1992: The US Congress passes the Iran-Iraq Arms Nonproliferation Act of 1992. It declares “that it is US policy to oppose any transfer of goods or technology to Iraq or Iran whenever there is reason to believe that such transfer could contribute to that country’s acquisition of chemical, biological, nuclear, or advanced conventional weapons.”
- 1996 August: The US Congress passes the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, later known as the Iran Sanctions Act. It seeks to penalize entities for investing in Iran’s petroleum industry, which could give it access to funds to develop or acquire weapons of mass destruction or finance terrorism. The law requires the United States to slap sanctions on foreign companies that invest more than $20 million a year in Iran’s oil or gas sector. The sanctions aren’t implemented, however, after European countries protest, until 2010.
- 1996-1997: US President Bill Clinton issues executive orders to generally prohibit the export of all goods and services from the United States to Iran or from Iran to the United States.
- 2007 March: The UN Security Council, responding to Iran’s failure to comply with its demand to suspend uranium enrichment, unanimously adopts Resolution 1747. This tightens sanctions on Iran in connection with its nuclear program.
- 2008 March: The UN Security Council passes Resolution 1803. This expands nuclear-related sanctions on Iran.
- 2010 June: The UN Security Council adopts Resolution 1929. This resolution tightens proliferation-related sanctions on Iran, bans Iran from carrying out tests of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, and imposes an embargo on the transfer of major weapons systems to Iran. The US Congress adopts the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act. These sanctions target firms investing in Iran’s energy sector or selling refined petroleum to Iran, and foreign banks doing business with designated Iranian banks.
- 2010 July: The European Union agrees to a targeted set of sanctions on Iran. These sanctions target “people, companies and sectors directly involved in Iran’s nuclear program and other areas.”
- 2011 December: The US Congress passes legislation that allows the United States to impose new sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran and to sanction third country banks if countries importing Iranian oil do not significantly reduce those imports within six months.
- 2012 January: The European Union agrees to ban imports of Iranian oil. The US Congress expands the threat of “secondary sanctions” against companies doing business with Iran through the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act (TRA). The TRA also extends the general prohibition on US persons doing business in Iran to any foreign entity owned or controlled by a US person.
- 2013 January: The US Congress further expands the threat of secondary sanctions against companies doing business in Iran with the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act (IFCA).
- 2013 November: Iran and the P5+1 meet in Geneva. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and EU High Representative Catherine Ashton, who leads the P5+1 negotiating team, sign the Joint Plan of Action (JPOA) on November 24. The JPOA spells out steps Iran must take—halt enrichment of uranium to 20 percent and provide the UN nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) access to monitor Iranian nuclear sites—in order to receive limited sanctions relief, a repatriation of some assets frozen abroad. The United States offers limited sanctions relief, including lifting the threat of sanctions on foreign companies dealing with Iran’s auto sector or purchasing Iranian petrochemicals.
- 2014 January: The IAEA finds that Iran is complying with the terms of the JPOA. The United States and the EU say they have taken steps to waive specific sanctions.
- 2015 July: Iran and the P5+1—the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, China, and Germany—sign the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Under the deal, Iran agrees to take steps to curb its nuclear program in return for a significant easing of US, UN, and EU sanctions.
- 2015 July: The UN Security Council unanimously passes Resolution 2231 endorsing the nuclear deal and the lifting of Security Council nuclear-related sanctions on Iran once conditions outlined in the deal are met.
- 2015 October: Iran and the P5+1 formally adopt the nuclear deal. Iran starts taking steps to curb its nuclear program. The Obama administration issues waivers on nuclear-related sanctions to come into effect on implementation day. The EU passes legislation to lift nuclear-related sanctions on implementation day.
- 2016 January: The IAEA verifies that Iran has met its commitments under the nuclear deal. Implementation day is announced and UN Security Council Resolution 2231 comes into effect. The United States lifts nuclear-related secondary sanctions on Iran. While those secondary sanctions are lifted, “primary” US sanctions on Iran remain in place. These sanctions prohibit most commercial activity between the United States and Iran, including export to Iran of most goods or services from the United States. They are governed primarily by the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations (ITSR). Exceptions are made for Boeing and Airbus passenger planes and foreign subsidiaries of US multinational companies.
- 2016 December: The US Congress passes a ten-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA). This becomes law on December 15. The US Secretary of State John Kerry reissues sanctions waivers on Iran.
- 2017 May, July: The Trump administration renews sanctions waivers. The Trump administration reluctantly certifies Iran's compliance with the JCPOA.
- 2017 July: The US House of Representatives passes H.R. 3364, the Countering Adversarial Nations Through Sanctions Act, which would impose new sanctions on Iran, North Korea and Russia.
- 2017 October: Trump does not certify the deal. He puts the onus on Congress saying if his concerns about the deal are not resolved he will terminate the agreement. However, he again waives sanctions.
- 2018 January: Trump reissues waivers on nuclear-related sanctions on Iran. He says he will not re-issue the waivers again unless Congress passes legislation to “fix” what he describes as flaws in the agreement.
- 2018 August: US President Trump signed an executive order on August 5 aimed at piling financial pressure on Tehran to force a "comprehensive and lasting solution" to Iranian threats, including its development of missiles and regional "malign" activities. Trump warned that those who don't wind down their economic ties to Iran "risk severe consequences.”
- The first phase, which took effect on August 7, targetted the Islamic Republic's access to US banknotes, making transactions in a US-dollar dominated financial world difficult. A ban on Iran purchasing precious metals including gold further serves as an attempt to cut the country off from global markets.
- Phase one also hits key industries including the purchase of commercial planes, cars and carpets. Iranian imports of graphite, aluminum, steel, coal, gold and some software are also affected. German automaker Daimler called off the production and sale of Mercedes-Benz trucks in Iran indefinitely after the sanctions came into force.
- 2018 November: A second phase of sanctions (due to take effect on November 5) will block Iran's oil sales and will cause more damage. Several countries, however, including China, India and Turkey have indicated they are not willing to entirely cut their Iranian energy purchases. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the United States had launched "psychological warfare" against Iran to create division amongst its people. But he insisted that Iran still can rely on its allies China and Russia to keep its oil and banking sectors afloat. He has also demanded compensation for decades of American "intervention" in the Islamic Republic.
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