IRAN’S FOOTBALLERS are having an unexpectedly(出乎意料地) good World Cup. On June 21st they held Belgium, ranked ninth in the world, to a draw in Los Angeles, leaving them within reach of(接近，可达) the knockout stages. Over in Switzerland, Iranian diplomats(外交官) are scoring(取得（成功）) even bigger successes. On June 22nd the Treasury Department up-ended(颠覆，推翻) four decades of American policy by issuing a sanctions waiver(豁免（令）) permitting the production, sale and delivery of Iranian petroleum for 60 days. The move will bring instant relief(立即的缓解) to the Iranian regime(政权), and it could over time(随着时间推移) make Iran rich again.
伊朗足球运动员正经历一场出人意料的出色世界杯。6月21日，他们在洛杉矶与排名世界第九的比利时队战平，有望进入淘汰赛阶段。而在瑞士，伊朗外交官取得了更大的成功。6月22日，美国财政部推翻了四十年的美国政策，发布了一项制裁豁免，允许在60天内生产、销售和交付伊朗石油。此举将立即缓解伊朗政权的压力，并可能逐渐使伊朗再次富有。
America banned(禁止) its firms from buying Iranian oil in 1980 in response to(作为对……的回应) the hostage crisis(人质危机) in its embassy in Tehran the previous year. That embargo(禁运) was supplemented(补充) in the early 2010s by “secondary” sanctions exposing(使暴露于) other buyers to American penalties(惩罚). Those were suspended(暂停) under Barack Obama’s nuclear deal of 2015, then reimposed(重新实施), in harsher form, when Donald Trump tore up(撕毁（协议）) the pact(协议) three years later.
美国于1980年禁止本国公司购买伊朗石油，以回应前一年美国驻德黑兰大使馆的人质危机。这一禁运在2010年代初得到“次级”制裁的补充，将其他买家置于美国惩罚之下。这些制裁在2015年巴拉克·奥巴马的核协议下被暂停，并在三年后唐纳德·特朗普撕毁协议时以更严厉的形式重新实施。
The latest waiver goes much further than any previous relief(救济（措施）). An earlier one, issued by Mr Trump while war between the countries raged(猛烈进行), covered only Iranian oil already loaded on ships. Licences granted to third countries under Mr Obama required them to cut purchases, which drove exports down from 2.5m barrels per day (b/d) in 2011 to 1.5m in 2012. Even Mr Obama’s nuclear deal lifted(解除（制裁）) only secondary sanctions. Mr Trump’s new licence imposes no such constraints(限制). American refiners(炼油厂/炼油商) may now buy Iranian petroleum directly, pay for it in dollars and receive it from blacklisted tankers(被列入黑名单的油轮)—rolling back(撤销), temporarily, the original embargo from 1980.
最新的豁免比以往任何一次救济都走得更远。早前特朗普在两国战争激烈时发布的豁免仅涵盖已装载在船上的伊朗石油。奥巴马时代授予第三国的许可证要求它们削减采购量，导致出口从2011年的每日250万桶降至2012年的150万桶。即使是奥巴马的核协议也只是解除了次级制裁。特朗普的新许可证则没有此类限制。美国炼油厂现在可以直接购买伊朗石油，用美元支付，并从黑名单上的油轮接收——暂时撤销了自1980年开始的原始禁运。
