Media comment by Jan Oberg
August 21, 2019
On August 19, 2019, Javad Zarif, the foreign minister of Iran, visited Finland to persuade it – and the rest of Europe – to stand up more firmly for the nuclear deal, JCPOA, from July.
But the prospect is bleak…
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Foreign Minister Zarif is right to say that the window of opportunity to save the JCPOA is closing, because Iran is suffering severely as the result of US economic terrorism.
It has just been reported that most members of the G-7, with the sole exception of the United States, have asked President Macron to try to talk to Iran and make sure that the JCPOA will not be given up altogether despite US’s illegal extraterritorial sanctions on Iran. Saving the JCPOA is important, not only for the sake of Iran, but for the sake of the case of non-proliferation, international law, and not giving in to a bully.
One does not have to like the Iranian government to admit that in this particular case Iran is on the right side of the argument, as it has adhered to the nuclear agreement, and the United States is the aggressor for having violated a landmark international agreement endorsed by the Security Council Resolution 2231 that lifted all sanctions on Iran.
The Trump regime may remain in power for the next year and a half or for the next five years and a half. Other signatories to the nuclear deal should make sure that Iran will be immune from the worst effects of US economic war and illegal sanctions and can continue with the JCPOA until there is a new administration in the United States and sanity returns. This means not seizing Iranian tankers on the orders of John Bolton or increasing tension in the Persian Gulf.
For the sake of international peace, it is important for the rest of the world to stand up to US’s illegal demands. The Trump regime has withdrawn from many critical international treaties and has made the world a much more dangerous place. If the EU cannot stand up to the current US regime, the least it can do is to reduce the malign effects of its policies until we return to some form of sane international order.