Iran — From a Different Perspective

If an agreement is reached with the P5+1 this November there will be billions of dollars of foreign investment flowing into the country, delivering the economic prospects demanded by its population.

Median age of Iran — 28.5!

In its current state, Iran is viewed as a pariah nation by the international community. That will inevitably change for a number of factors, as a matter of fact the international community has been waiting for Iran to make its entrance. Iran is an untapped population of 70 million curious, technologically-savvy & well-educated ambitious youth who have been waiting for their day to become integrated in the global community. With technology today, you cannot simply reject the world around you, and this is something Iranian government officials are fully aware of.

Let’s Look at President Rouhani of Iran: Mr. Rouhani has a Ph.D in Constitutional Law from Glasgow Caledonian University. He is a lawyer by profession and has gained public approval through his moderate and even liberal sentiments which he have revealed to be far more reflective of public opinion than most of his predecessors.

After a series of chaotic events involving ISIS and its self-proclaimed caliphate which has redrawn the borders of Iraq and Syria, we have seen the stars align and the foundation for a US-Iran partnership is now more sensible than it probably will ever be in the future. How often do two foes suddenly find themselves sharing the same enemy. More importantly, why does Iran hate ISIS? The answer is simple. Iranians are Shi’ite Muslims, which only make up about 10% of global Islam. The remaining 90% of Muslims are Sunnis, which ISIS practices the most radical form of, also known as Wahabi Islam. Wahabi Islam started in Saudi Arabia and is one of the most violent interpretations of the Islamic scripture.

With that said, Al Qaeda is also made up of Sunni Muslims who have attacked and killed Shi’ite mosques throughout Iraq. Thus, this partnership between the US and Iran is actually nothing new, especially for foreign intelligence insiders. During the late 1990's Iranian intelligence agencies were actually corroborating with the CIA in Afghanistan to stop the expansion of Al Qaeda which threatened Iran’s eastern border. Then the events on September 11, 2001 took place, and Iran found itself as part of the Axis of Evil… haha. Nonetheless, we’re back where we started. The interests are aligned and the stage is set once again. More importnatly, for investors the opportunity to participate in an economy which, given its natural resources, should actually be one of the richest in the world. Assuming that sanctions relief is granted next month, billions upon billions of dollars and investment capital will start flowing into the country.

The capital will be attracted by the obvious: natural gas reserves — Iran is #4 in oil reserves with 157 billion barrels, worth $35 trillion at current market prices. Iran is #1 in reserves of zinc, #2 in copper and #9 in iron ore to go along with impressive amounts of lead, gold and other minerals estimated at over 7% of the world’s mineral reserves.

Sources: Iran Parliament Research Centre, FAO and Iran Agricultural Ministry