LIVE BLOG: Iran nuclear deal

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani addressed his people by opening with a divine revelation.

“This Ramadan people prayed for a good Iran deal,” he began. “I announce it has come true. God has accepted the nation’s prayers."

“What mattered the most was the steadfastness, patience and resistance shown by the courageous nation of Iran,” he said. “Today with the grace of god it has been the year that brought about victory and success to us.”

Rouhani criticised sanctions, saying that they only impact on the lives of ordinary people.

“I said from first day, west can have interaction with us but should first stop threatening us."

"Today we arrived at a new point. Implementing of this agreement is the beginning of trust [of the west]. Gradually we can say the wall of mistrust will be removed.”

Rouhani said that Iran entered the negotiations with four objectives in mind:

To protect and continue their nuclear activities; to put an end to the “inhuman” and “tyrannical” sanctions; to address and annul all of the UN resolutions on sanctioning the country; to present the deal to the United Nations Security Council.

“These objectives have been achieved,” he said.

In a joint press conference, EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini described today as “historic” and stated that the achievement is the result of a collective effort.

“With courage, political will, mutual respect and leadership we delivered on what the world was hoping for: a shared commitment to peace and joined hands to make our world safer.”

“No one thought this would be easy,” she continued. “Historic decisions never are. We have always been aware we had a responsibility to our generation and future ones.”

Under the deal, Mogherini said, Iran “reaffirms that under no circumstances will it seek, acquire or develop nuclear weapons” in return for the “complete lifting of all sanctions related to Iran’s nuclear programme.”

Iran’s foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zafir read out the same paper in Farsi.

The last ministerial meeting has ended, meaning that Iran’s nuclear deal is formally concluded. 

Some of the highlights of the deal include:

• Billions of US dollars in frozen assets would be released
• According to IRNA, Iran would no longer be barred from purchasing certain ‘duel-use’ machinery
• Sanctions on Iran’s central bank, a national oil company, shipping lines, and the national air carrier would be lifted
•  UN inspectors given access to military sites for monitoring, but Iran could challenge requests for access
• Restoration of sanctions within 65 days if Iran were to breach the agreement
•  A UN arms embargo is expected to remain in place for five years. Missile sanctions would remain in place for eight years

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that all sanctions should be lifted from Iran, which has a right to a peaceful nuclear program.

The deal stipulates that the UN arms embargo against Iran will remain for another five years. US missile sanctions will stay for another eight years.

Under a “snapback” plan, sanctions may be renewed within 65 days if Iran violates the agreement.

However, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius believes that the deal will last for at least 10 years.

Speaking to the French Le Monde newspaper, Fabius attributed France's role "of constructive firmness enabled a sufficiently robust agreement."

"It is in this spirit that we will watch over its implementation,” he added.

Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yıldız welcomed the agreement, saying it was a "very positive development" and "could unlock investment".

"Removal of sanctions on Iran is significant for investments in the country as well as oil prices," Yildiz said.

Noting that Iran has rich oil and natural gas, the energy minister said that supplying these resources to the region and the world would have important consequences for oil prices.

Diplomatic ties between the two countries have been fraught with opposing policies and interests in the Middle East, but maintained by the benefits of maintaining good bilateral relations, analysts say.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini gave a brief press conference in Vienna, with Zarif saying the deal is "not perfect".

"Today could have been the end of hope on this issue but today we are starting a new chapter of hope,” Zarif said.

They then withdrew to a private session to formally take up the deal, which comprises over a hundred pages and has five different annexes attached.

The deal will be taken up by the UN Security Council in a few weeks to turn it into an international law. 

Meanwhile, Saudi state television has chosen to ignore the news completely.

"Iran is going to receive a sure path to nuclear weapons. Many of the restrictions that were supposed to prevent it from getting there will be lifted," Netanyahu said from in Jerusalem.

"Iran will get a jackpot, a cash bonanza of hundreds of billions of dollars, which will enable it to continue to pursue its aggression and terror in the region and in the world. This is a bad mistake of historic proportions."

Yukiya Amano, the head of the UN atomic watchdog said that he has signed with Iran a "roadmap" for probing suspected efforts to develop nuclear weapons, a key part of an overall accord with major powers.

"I have just signed the roadmap between the Islamic republic of Iran and the IAEA for the clarification of past and present outstanding issues regarding Iran's nuclear programme," International Atomic Energy Agency chief Yukiya Amano said ahead of the expected announcement of a historic deal with major powers.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani tweeted photos of the signing taking place.