Thursday, May 10, 2018
The view from Iran: Treacherous America, spineless Europe
The view from Iran: Treacherous America, spineless Europe
#InsideIran
There's a method to Trump's madness, some Iranians believe - while
others see little actual methodology involved in his decision-making
process. Before the age of Trump, the conversation in Tehran about
relations with the West has almost always involved debate on two key
questions: US trustworthiness and EU significance.
The longstanding and prevailing view has been that the United States is
politically dishonest and the European Union is inconsequential. During
the 2013 election campaign of President Hassan Rouhani, this assessment
of the US was publicly challenged while the consensus about the
Europeans remained unchanged.
Substantive results
President Rouhani believed that the European Union did not have the
capacity, or at least the will, to act as a global player. After all, he
spent a considerable amount of time leading nuclear negotiations with
Germany, France, and the United Kingdom and concluded that these three
countries were ineffectual and that Iran needed to negotiate with the
United States for substantive results.
After lengthy deliberations in Tehran, where advocates of direct
negotiations insisted that the US had decided to change policy and
accept Iran's full legal right to a peaceful nuclear programme, direct
US-Iran talks were scheduled.
Despite deep skepticism about US reliability and intentions, the
Iranians decided to put their assessment of the Americans to the test.
Before the 2013 Iranian presidential election, they accepted a US
proposal for secret and direct negotiations in Oman.
Despite deep skepticism about US reliability and intentions, the Iranians decided to put their assessment of the Americans to the test
Further proof that the stars were aligned was that Iran's former
ambassador to the United Nations, Dr Javad Zarif, a veteran diplomat
with substantial experience dealing with US politicians, think tanks and
media, was to lead these negotiations after President Rouhani's
inauguration.
In order to open a new chapter in Iran-US relations, Rouhani and his
political backers were willing to make significant concessions to close a
nuclear deal. The individual in this camp who was probably the most
cautious about conceding too much was the foreign minister himself.
Meanwhile, those who passionately opposed the deal warned about past
experiences, relentlessly reminding the government and the public of the
US history of deceptiveness.
After all, they had decades of experience with US "promises" since the
1981 Algiers Accords in which the US committed itself to no longer
intervene politically or militarily in the internal affairs of Iran.
American aggressions
Almost from the onset, the Americans repeatedly and flagrantly violated
the agreement - through "crippling sanctions", funding terrorist
organisations, downing an Iranian civilian airliner, destroying Iranian
oil facilities, aiding Saddam Hussein in his use of chemical munitions
and providing him with political cover during his devastating eight-year
war with Iran.
Still, the Iranians persisted in extending opportunities for goodwill.
After the Iran-Iraq war ended, for instance, Iran gave a major oilfield
to the US Conoco oil company to develop. Despite the US government being
kept abreast of developments during four years of Iranian negotiations
with the energy company, Washington blocked the deal immediately after
an agreement was reached.
A
handout picture provided by the Iranian Parliament on 9 May 2018 shows
Iranian MPs preparing to burn a US flag in the parliament in Tehran
(AFP)
In the aftermath of terror attacks on September 11, Iran negotiated and
cooperated with the United States over Afghanistan, only to be labeled a
part of an "axis of evil." Under Obama, the United States imposed
"crippling sanctions," punishing ordinary Iranians and killing thousands
of people who were unable to obtain live-saving pharmaceuticals until
Iran was able to find ways to bypass the sanctions.
Today, due to years of experience and the very recent global shift in balance of power, Iran is much better prepared and positioned to deal with sanctions
It armed Iran's adversaries to the teeth, unleashed armies of Takfiri
jihadists inside Iran's geographical "strategic depth," and deployed the world's most potent weapons systems on Iran's borders.
Those aggressions are okay, but Trump has a problem with "Death to
America" slogans? Is the widespread desire of ordinary Iranians to end
US arrogance, duplicity and hegemony that difficult for The Donald to
grasp?
Despite his skepticism about US sincerity, Ayatollah Khamenei gave the
go-ahead for President Rouhani to pursue nuclear negotiations, stating
publicly that if the United States demonstrates good will other issues
could subsequently be discussed.
As expected, the opposite happened. While the Iranian side angered its
domestic critics by exercising significant flexibility, the US
administration began violating the spirit and letter of the agreement
almost immediately after it was announced.
An ugly visa restriction law and the Iran Sanctions Act were passed
under Obama, more individuals and companies were sanctioned, but most
importantly, behind closed doors, the US was warning banks, financial
institutions, insurance companies and others not to do business with
Iran - in clear violation of Articles 26 and 29 of the agreement.
The Iranians, meanwhile, not only complied with every expectation of the
agreement, in certain instances they beat the clock in delivering their
commitments.
Tangible results
Under Trump, the collapse of the JCPOA gained pace and reached a stage
where most Iranians believe it to be dead. Over almost three years, they
have seen few tangible results from halting their peaceful nuclear
programme and meeting every one of their obligations.
Iranians believe that as the US exits the agreement, the US government
will be seen by the international community as irresponsible, unreliable
and aggressive. In contrast, by delaying its own exit for a few weeks
to explore EU spine-growth capabilities, Iran will be vindicated
further.
As they were vindicated when incoming US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo admitted to
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Iran was not moving towards
building a nuclear weapon even before the nuclear deal - unwittingly
destroying a 15-year-old dishonest US narrative.
READ MORE ►
France's Emmanuel Macron and Germany's Angela Merkel will also be viewed
as damaged goods for persistently attempting to appease Trump and
receiving nothing whatsoever in return. The EU is increasingly seen as
ineffectual if not irrelevant, thus creating a greater incentive for
Iran to pivot to China and Russia, both economically and politically.
Ironically, this comes as Russia and China are facing similar hostility and pressure, and as a result, have reached similar conclusions.
Today, due to years of experience and the very recent global shift in
balance of power, Iran is much better prepared and positioned to deal
with sanctions. Unlike a decade ago, it has powerful regional allies and
its relationships with rising non-western powers have evolved
significantly.
If western countries shut their doors, there are other doors opening to
Iran and the ultimate biggest loser in this process will be the US, a
weak and submissive Europe, and their erratic regional client regimes.
The choice is theirs to make.
- Seyed Mohammad Marandi is a professor of English Literature and Orientalism at the University of Tehran.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
Photo: An Iranian woman walks past a
mural on the wall of the former US embassy in the Iranian capital
Tehran on 8 May, 2018. (AFP)
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