Five takeaways from Iran nuclear deal

1) Sanctions

Iran wanted immediate removal of all UN sanctions and relief from the American and European economic and financial curbs that have throttled its economy. In the event, the deal lifts all economic and financial sanctions against Iran - but only after it has been shown to have complied with its obligations on reducing centrifuges and uranium stockpiles. Officials estimate that process will take six months to a year; waiting until 2016 for tangible economic benefits may seem too long for some in Tehran.

UN resolutions against Iran will eventually be lifted in unison once Iran has addressed "all key concerns". This includes the potential military dimensions to its programme - a matter so sensitive it was left to the very end of the Lausanne talks. Even then restrictions on access to sensitive technologies and ballistic missiles will be maintained in a new resolution.

Some measures to monitor and assess compliance - and handle disputes - are sketched out but key details remain unresolved. Judging what "compliance" entails will be highly contentious. Should there be a violation, sanctions are restored through a "snap back" mechanism. That is easy enough for US sanctions, but diplomats have struggled to design a mechanism for reimposing UN sanctions that would be immune from political vetoes from Russia or China.

2) Uranium enrichment

Debate about the deal has often focused on one issue: how many centrifuges will Iran keep. Iran currently has 19,000 centrifuges and wanted to keep them all. The US initially said it would accept only 1,000-2,000. In the end, the agreement allows Iran to use 5,060 of its oldest centrifuges over the next decade to enrich uranium. In addition, Iran will only be permitted to enrich uranium to 3.67 per cent, well below the level needed for a weapon, according to the US.

Iran also appeared to give more on the issue of Fordow, the underground enrichment facility carved into a mountain. Fordow will not be destroyed, as some had urged, and Iranian officials say it will maintain 1,000 centrifuges. But it will not be used to enrich uranium during the life of the deal.

Fordow centrifuges could be fed other elements, such as germanium, which could produce material used in medicine. James Acton, a nuclear expert at the Carnegie Endowment, said it would be difficult to later convert the same machines back to enrich uranium. Other options include using Fordow as a physics lab for nuclear fusion.

The big questions in the US and Israel will be about how quickly Iran could start to rebuild its nuclear infrastructure assuming it complies with the terms of an agreement. The general restrictions on enriching uranium last for 10 years, while on Fordow they last for 15 years. Strict limits on enrichment research will be phased out after 10 years according to an unspecified plan. Should Iran violate the deal, curbs over the first 10 years are supposed to ensure a 12-month "break out time" to build a bomb. It is unclear what this falls to by year 15, but it is likely to be significantly less than a year.

3) Plutonium

Diplomats long feared that Iran's Arak heavy water research reactor would be used to produce enough plutonium for a nuclear bomb, creating another route to a weapon. Under the deal, Iran promised not to use the facility for weapons-grade plutonium production - a pledge it backs up by removing from the country or destroying the original core of the reactor. Such a significant change would take years to reverse.

Any heavy water beyond the needs of the reactor will be sold on the international market for the next 15 years. Iran also promises not to build any additional heavy water reactors through that period.

4) Inspections

Under the agreement, international inspectors will have access to the complete supply chain of Iran's nuclear complex - not just the facilities that enrich uranium but also the uranium mines, the plants that produce centrifuge machinery and its storage facilities. The inspection regime will last from between 20 to 25 years.

In addition, Iran has agreed to sign the Additional Protocol of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which grants inspectors access to declared and undeclared sites.

One highly sensitive issue is access to facilities, scientists and documents related to military applications of nuclear research. Senior officials say that all the important sites in Iran are covered by the requirement. Public details remain sketchy.

5) What is left to be decided?

As the parties delve into the fine print, the remaining technical issues could still be deal-breakers. The conditions and timing for removing sanctions remain a potential stumbling block. Judging from the vague answers about the treatment of Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium, it appears that there is still considerable disagreement about the way that it will be reduced. Big questions also remain about Iranian weapons research, and research on advanced centrifuges after ten years. The biggest potential obstacles, however, are domestic politics in Washington and Tehran, where Congress or Iranian hardliners could yet find ways to block the diplomacy.

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