World Politics News   Articles for World Politics Course

The UN Security Council unanimously endorsed the nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1.  The act means that the first step toward lifting the sanctions against Iran has been taken.  If the IAEA verifies that Iran has taken the necessary steps, all UN sanctions will be lifted.  Those sanctions are different from the ones placed by the US Congress which need Congressional approval in order to end.  Some in Congress are angry that the Security Council has taken action before the Congress had a chance to approve the agreement.  The UN sanctions were, in fact, more serious than the Congressional sanctions since the US sanctions only affected US trade with Iran which was non-existent after 1979.  The UN sanctions involved other countries which had a much more substantial economic relations with Iran and were therefore more powerful.   And the UN certainly does not need US approval to take action.

The Cuban Embassy in Washington raised the Cuban flag for the first time in 54 years as the US and Cuba re-established diplomatic relations.   There are still a number of issues that divide the two countries, but the same is true for a very large number of countries with who the US has diplomatic relations.  The step is long overdue and the US and Cuba have a very large number of common interests.  Let us hope that both countries have the wisdom to recognize them.