Iranians say sanctions hurt people but not hardline government

TEHRAN, Iran -- While opinions differ across Tehran's Grand Bazaar about the ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Iran over its unraveling nuclear deal, there's one thing those in the beating heart of Iran's capital city agree on: American sanctions hurt the average person, not those in charge.

From an English-language teacher hoping for peace to an appliance salesman who applauded President Donald Trump as a "successful businessman," all said they suffered from the economic hardships sparked by reimposed and newly created American sanctions. The Iranian rial's collapse has eaten into the savings of a retired bank clerk, while a young man with a shock of bleached-blond hair says those his age want to leave the country.

Iranians spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday, a day after authorities acknowledged the country had broken through the limit placed on its stockpile of low-enriched uranium by the 2015 nuclear deal. Trump pulled the U.S. out of the deal a year ago.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington have seen the U.S. rush an aircraft carrier, nuclear-capable B-52 bombers, F-22 fighters and thousands of additional troops to the Middle East. While Iran says it doesn't seek war, it recently shot down a U.S. military surveillance drone. Iran also now acknowledges an "intentional" disruption to GPS coordinates in the country by authorities, interfering with position data used by the U.S. military for airstrikes and drone flights.

Under the nuclear deal, Iran agreed to have less than 661 pounds of uranium enriched to a maximum of 3.67%, which can be used for power stations but is far below weapons-grade levels of 90%. Both Iran and the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency confirmed Monday that Tehran had broken through that limit.

While that represents Iran's first major departure from the accord, it still remains likely a year away from having enough material for a nuclear weapon. Iran insists its program is for peaceful purposes, but the West fears it could allow Iran to build a bomb.

Iran also has threatened for weeks to push its enrichment closer to weapons-grade levels Sunday if Europe doesn't put forth a new deal to protect Tehran from U.S. sanctions. As the stockpile and enrichment rises, the estimated year narrows.

"There should be some negotiations. Both parties should talk in a friendly manner," said Nahroba Alirezei, a 35-year-old English-language teacher. "They should think about the Iranian people and the Iranian society and the American society. Young people should not suffer more than this."

On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov urged Iran to "show restraint, not yield to emotions." China expressed regret, while French President Emmanuel Macron urged Iran to reduce its stockpile.

Iranian parliament speaker Ali Larijani criticized the increasing U.S. military presence in a televised speech.

"They think they can just come and occupy a country by sending four warships to the region," Larijani said. He also warned other countries in the region not to join any U.S. coalition against it, saying: "If they rally against us, they will have to pay the price for it."

While the government says challenging the West over its nuclear program is necessary, some Iranians such as Sajjad Nazary, a 23-year-old university student in Tehran, question the move as leading to more economic suffering.

"Instead of the nuclear program, the Iranian people need bread," Nazary told the AP outside of Tehran's sprawling bazaar. "They want their economic situation to get better. The point is with nuclear energy, you can't make your children's bellies feel full."

But Nazary, like others there, said he didn't believe a war would break out.

"Trump is too smart to do that, and he'll in no way harm himself like that," Nazary said. "The situation is dangerous, but none of us are aware of the politics. Maybe all of this was a threat meant to open some new ways."

He added: "This was just a threat to make the Iranian officials come to their senses."

Despite that optimism, there are signs Iran is taking the threat of a possible military escalation seriously.

Hossein Fallah Joshaghani, a government telecommunications official, told the state-run IRNA news agency Monday the source of the GPS disruptions in the country had been determined, but no action was taken. That suggests an authority in Iran is actively disrupting GPS systems, which can be used for U.S. drones and airstrikes, as well as civil aviation and mobile phone apps.

While some blame Trump for the tensions, Mehdi Hamzeh Nia, a 39-year-old appliance salesman, applauded the U.S. president as a "successful businessman, a man who knows what he's doing and doesn't want others to know what he's doing."

Asked about the economy, which has seen the rial go from 32,000 to $1 to now nearly 130,000, Hamzeh Nia blamed not just the sanctions but local mismanagement as well. Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran's government has careened between economic crises involving poor planning and embezzlement, which U.S. sanctions have exacerbated.

"I think 50% is related to sanctions and 50% is domestic," he said. "Even if the foreign 50% is resolved, and the domestic 50% is not fixed, our situation will still get worse."