US Relations in Iran

1. To get around the ban, members of Reagan's staff secretly sold weapons to Iran and used the profits to fund the Contras.

1.1. These deals were illegal, and Reagan claimed they were done without his knowledge.

2. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad defeated Mir Hossein Mousavi in the election of 2009 in what many feel was a fraudulent election.

2.1. After the results were announced, many Iranians took to the streets in protest.

3. In 2013, Hassan Rouhani became the new leader of Iran.

3.1. Considered to be a reformist, Rouhani entered into negotiations with the United States to end economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for Iran's commitment not to build nuclear weapons.

4. In 1979, Muslim religious leader Ayotollah Khomeini overthrew the Shah of Iran and took control of the nation.

4.1. In November of 1979, the American embassy in Tehron was seized and 53 Americans were taken hostage.

5. During the 1980s, President Reagan gave aid to anticommunists in Niaragua and El Salvador.

5.1. Later, Congress passed a law known as the Contras that banned future aid from being sent to anticommunist rebels in Nicaragua.

6. The US, Russia, China, Great Britian, France and Germany reached an agreement with Iran in July of 2015 that would limit Iran's ability to develop nuclear weapons.

6.1. Iran agreed to enrich only enough uranium to provide electricity for the nation, but not enough to develop nuclear weapons.