Pompeo Slams European Allies for ‘Siding With’ Iran
UNITED NATIONS (Kayhan Intl.) -- The United States formally began the process Thursday of activating a controversial mechanism aimed at reimposing sanctions on Iran, a move that was immediately rejected by European allies fighting to save the Iranian nuclear deal.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Britain, France and Germany of "siding with the ayatollahs” after they insisted Washington had no legal right to trigger the disputed procedure called "snapback.”
Pompeo personally submitted a letter to the president of the UN Security Council and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York, accusing Iran of "significant” non-compliance with the terms of the 2015 historic accord, according to a copy seen by AFP.
It is intended to launch the start of the process to snapback sanctions on Iran that threatens to torpedo the historic 2015 nuclear accord and threatens to plunge the Security Council into crisis.
It also widens the gulf between the U.S. and almost every other Security Council member on Iran policy, which began when President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018.
The procedure, never before used, comes after the U.S. suffered a humiliating defeat at the Security Council last week when it failed to muster support for a resolution to extend a conventional arms embargo on Iran.
The snapback aims to restore all international sanctions against Iran that were lifted as part of the nuclear agreement with Tehran in exchange for it agreeing to halt some aspects of its nuclear energy program.
But it also threatens to sink that historic deal, known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which Britain, France and Germany—along with Russia and China—are trying to save.
Britain, France and Germany released a joint statement saying they would not support the action "which is incompatible” with efforts to preserve the JCPOA.
"We call on all UNSC members to refrain from any action that would only deepen divisions in the Security Council or that would have serious adverse consequences on its work,” they said.
Pompeo accused them of a "failure of leadership” and claimed that their actions would "endanger” people living in the Middle East and their own citizens as well.
A Security Council resolution ratifying the accord, which was negotiated by former president Barack Obama, says participating states can unilaterally reimpose sanctions if Iran has failed to significantly comply with the agreement.
The snapback procedure is supposed to lead to the re-establishment of sanctions after 30 days, without the possibility of any members, namely Russia and China, wielding their vetoes.
European countries on the Security Council say the U.S. gave up its right as a participant when Trump pulled out of the deal in May 2018 and reimposed American sanctions as part of his "maximum pressure” campaign against the Iranian regime.
Pompeo insists that America can trigger a snapback because it was a participant when the deal was signed and insisted it would successfully lead to the automatic renewal of sanctions in 30 days and an extension of the arms embargo.
The U.S. accuses Russia and China of planning to sell arms to Iran when the embargo expires.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted that Washington’s move was "illegitimate and felonious.”
A Chinese spokesperson said it has "no legal ground” and would not be considered as starting a snapback process. "It is nothing but a political show staged by the United States,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Kelly Craft, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told a German newspaper on Friday that the behavior of the European allies has been "disappointing” with regards to the U.S. move against Iran.
"This is very disappointing,” German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung quoted Craft as saying in an interview.
"This matter is so important that we cannot wait until the arms embargo runs out on Oct. 18. We cannot wait for the world to realize on Oct. 18 that China and Russia have the ability to deliver weapons and Iran to buy them,” she added.
Experts say the snapback attempt raises questions about the legitimacy of UN resolutions.
They foresee a situation in which the United States acts as if the sanctions have been reimposed -- and the rest of the Council continues as before.
"There’s no doubt the Trump White House is using snapback as a desperate last gambit to burn the JCPOA house down before the U.S. elections,” Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told AFP.
"This move will leave the UN Security Council in one big mess, with competing narratives among world powers over if the UN sanctions against Iran should be reinforced,” she said.
"What it does is to leave a lasting damage for the UN Security Council and further isolates the U.S. position on Iran.”
To the Trump administration’s critics, the push against Iran is an indefensible form of the president’s America First foreign policy.
"They are pushing our allies to balance against us, along with our adversaries,” said Jon B. Alterman, a geostrategy and security expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "It’s unthinkable to me why you would intentionally lose a fight like this, at the UN.”
According to the New York Times, the diplomatic standoff "may be the most vivid example yet of how the United States has largely isolated itself from the world order — instead of isolating Tehran, as the Trump administration intended.”
CNN said, "The Trump administration was left isolated on the world stage as foreign allies and competitors alike rejected its demand to restore UN sanctions on Iran.”
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Britain, France and Germany of "siding with the ayatollahs” after they insisted Washington had no legal right to trigger the disputed procedure called "snapback.”
Pompeo personally submitted a letter to the president of the UN Security Council and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York, accusing Iran of "significant” non-compliance with the terms of the 2015 historic accord, according to a copy seen by AFP.
It is intended to launch the start of the process to snapback sanctions on Iran that threatens to torpedo the historic 2015 nuclear accord and threatens to plunge the Security Council into crisis.
It also widens the gulf between the U.S. and almost every other Security Council member on Iran policy, which began when President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018.
The procedure, never before used, comes after the U.S. suffered a humiliating defeat at the Security Council last week when it failed to muster support for a resolution to extend a conventional arms embargo on Iran.
The snapback aims to restore all international sanctions against Iran that were lifted as part of the nuclear agreement with Tehran in exchange for it agreeing to halt some aspects of its nuclear energy program.
But it also threatens to sink that historic deal, known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which Britain, France and Germany—along with Russia and China—are trying to save.
Britain, France and Germany released a joint statement saying they would not support the action "which is incompatible” with efforts to preserve the JCPOA.
"We call on all UNSC members to refrain from any action that would only deepen divisions in the Security Council or that would have serious adverse consequences on its work,” they said.
Pompeo accused them of a "failure of leadership” and claimed that their actions would "endanger” people living in the Middle East and their own citizens as well.
A Security Council resolution ratifying the accord, which was negotiated by former president Barack Obama, says participating states can unilaterally reimpose sanctions if Iran has failed to significantly comply with the agreement.
The snapback procedure is supposed to lead to the re-establishment of sanctions after 30 days, without the possibility of any members, namely Russia and China, wielding their vetoes.
European countries on the Security Council say the U.S. gave up its right as a participant when Trump pulled out of the deal in May 2018 and reimposed American sanctions as part of his "maximum pressure” campaign against the Iranian regime.
Pompeo insists that America can trigger a snapback because it was a participant when the deal was signed and insisted it would successfully lead to the automatic renewal of sanctions in 30 days and an extension of the arms embargo.
The U.S. accuses Russia and China of planning to sell arms to Iran when the embargo expires.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted that Washington’s move was "illegitimate and felonious.”
A Chinese spokesperson said it has "no legal ground” and would not be considered as starting a snapback process. "It is nothing but a political show staged by the United States,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Kelly Craft, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told a German newspaper on Friday that the behavior of the European allies has been "disappointing” with regards to the U.S. move against Iran.
"This is very disappointing,” German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung quoted Craft as saying in an interview.
"This matter is so important that we cannot wait until the arms embargo runs out on Oct. 18. We cannot wait for the world to realize on Oct. 18 that China and Russia have the ability to deliver weapons and Iran to buy them,” she added.
Experts say the snapback attempt raises questions about the legitimacy of UN resolutions.
They foresee a situation in which the United States acts as if the sanctions have been reimposed -- and the rest of the Council continues as before.
"There’s no doubt the Trump White House is using snapback as a desperate last gambit to burn the JCPOA house down before the U.S. elections,” Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told AFP.
"This move will leave the UN Security Council in one big mess, with competing narratives among world powers over if the UN sanctions against Iran should be reinforced,” she said.
"What it does is to leave a lasting damage for the UN Security Council and further isolates the U.S. position on Iran.”
To the Trump administration’s critics, the push against Iran is an indefensible form of the president’s America First foreign policy.
"They are pushing our allies to balance against us, along with our adversaries,” said Jon B. Alterman, a geostrategy and security expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "It’s unthinkable to me why you would intentionally lose a fight like this, at the UN.”
According to the New York Times, the diplomatic standoff "may be the most vivid example yet of how the United States has largely isolated itself from the world order — instead of isolating Tehran, as the Trump administration intended.”
CNN said, "The Trump administration was left isolated on the world stage as foreign allies and competitors alike rejected its demand to restore UN sanctions on Iran.”
No comments:
Post a Comment