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WHY IT MATTERS: Issues at stake in election

FILE - In this Nov. 4, 2015, file photo, an Iranian demonstrator holds an anti-U.S. placard during an annual rally in front of the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran. Last year’s nuclear deal has removed for now the threat of a U.S.-Iranian military confrontation. But the deal rests on shaky ground. Relations between the U.S. and Iran have warmed since the agreement, to the dismay of U.S. allies like Israel and Saudi Arabia. The once hostile foes are cooperating to end Syria’s civil war. Each military is staying out of the other’s way as they battle the Islamic State group in Iraq. Nuclear consultations occur daily. But the next president could have his or her hands’ full. The Iranians are threatening to renege unless they receive greater economic benefits. In Congress, many Republicans and even some Democrats still want the deal’s collapse.(AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, file) FILE - In this Nov. 4, 2015, file photo, an Iranian demonstrator holds an anti-U.S. placard during an annual rally in front of the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran. Last year’s nuclear deal has removed for now the threat of a U.S.-Iranian military confrontation. But the deal rests on shaky ground. Relations between the U.S. and Iran have warmed since the agreement, to the dismay of U.S. allies like Israel and Saudi Arabia. The once hostile foes are cooperating to end Syria’s civil war. Each military is staying out of the other’s way as they battle the Islamic State group in Iraq. Nuclear consultations occur daily. But the next president could have his or her hands’ full. The Iranians are threatening to renege unless they receive greater economic benefits. In Congress, many Republicans and even some Democrats still want the deal’s collapse.(AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, file)

By Associated Press September 17, 2016 16 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – A selection of issues at stake in the presidential election and their impact on Americans, in brief:

IRAN

Last year’s nuclear deal with Tehran has removed for now the threat of a U.S.-Iranian military confrontation. But the deal rests on shaky ground.

The accord curtailed Iran’s nuclear program, pulling it back from atomic weapons capability in exchange for the end of many economic sanctions.

But the next president could have his or her hands full, dealing with Iran in general and the agreement in particular. Various restrictions on Iran start ending in about seven years.