“The €300 million cash withdrawal”
There are sound political and moral reasons for both censoring Iran and not censoring it. Moral or not, my guess is that most nations will breathe a sigh of relief if German authorities see it fit to let the €300 million cash withdrawal go through. It would be a sign to all of us that we don’t live in a unipolar monetary world where a single American censor can prevent entire nations from making the most basic of cross-border payments.
The €300 million cash withdrawal
By: J.P. Koning – American Institute for Economic Research
…Bundesbank rejects the request by European-Iranian Handelsbank to withdraw the €300 million.
Germany, or the Bundesbank Caves In
By:Dirk Niepelt – University of Bern
The sanctions
Ianchovichina and al. use a general equilibrium simulation model to quantify the economic effects for Iran and the global economy from the lifting of economic sanctions. They find that while the reduction in Iran’s trade costs, and the liberalization of cross-border imports of financial and transport services are contributing to Iran’s economic development, exporting oil to the EU is the single most important factor contributing to Iran’s economic welfare.
Lifting Economic Sanctions on Iran: Global Effects and Strategic Responses
Authors: Elena Ianchovichina, Shantayanan Devarajan, and Csilla Lakatos
From: World Bank
Gharibnavaz and Waschik found that the sanctions imposed on Iran in 2011/2012 reduced aggregate Iranian welfare by 14%–15%. But the government of Iran saw a decrease in real revenue of 40%–50%, due to the large negative effect of sanctions on the Iranian oil sector.
A Computable General Equilibrium Model of International Sanctions
Authors: M. Reza Gharibnavaz, Robert Waschik
From: La Trobe University, Victoria University
For an interesting read
Today though, Washington does not understand Iran—its nuances, cleavages, opportunities, or its changes. As a result, Washington’s go-to Iran policy option of containment has become nothing but short term and reactionary resulting in little impact on the ground. The absence of political ties has also limited its ability to nurture or nudge Iran towards much-needed popularly supported change. Indeed, anti-Iranian sentiment has become the status quo pillar of US foreign policy in the same way that the Islamic Republic holds fast to its anti-American ideology.
Iran on the Brink
By: Sanam Vakil – Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies
