New British Prime Minister Faced with Two Major Challenges: Brexit and Iran

Sarah Abed, an independent journalist and political commentator

The two most pressing issues on newly appointed UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s plate right now are Brexit and Iran. Will the UK leave the EU on October 31st regardless of whether they have a new deal, as he has stated previously? Will he choose diplomacy with Iran over increased sanctions and a military confrontation?

Brexit

On July 23rd it was announced that Boris Johnson was the winner of the Conservative Party leadership. Theresa May stepped down having failed to take Britain out of the European Union.

On July 24th Boris Johnson was formally appointed as the new Prime Minister of the UK, by Queen Elizabeth II in Buckingham Palace. Shortly after his Johnson began appointing his Senior Ministers: Finance Minister: Sajid Javid, Interior Minister Priti Patel, Foreign Minister Dominic Raab, Brexit Minister Stephen Barclay, and Defense Minister Ben Wallace.

In his first speech as PM on July 24th Boris Johnson has addressed the first issue, he said "We are going to fulfill the repeated promises of parliament to the people and come out of the EU on October 31, no ifs or buts.”

Johnson continued on to say "We will do a new deal, a better deal that will maximize the opportunities of Brexit while allowing us to develop a new and exciting partnership with the rest of Europe based on free trade and mutual support. I have every confidence that in 99 days’ time we will have cracked it. But you know what —-we aren’t going to wait 99 days because the British people have had enough of waiting. The time has come to act, to take decisions, to give strong leadership and to change this country for the better," he said.

Iran

Theresa May was more aligned with the views of Brussels, Berlin, and Paris when it came to the JCPOA or Iran Deal. Whereas some experts are saying that Johnson might shift and realign himself and the UK, with the United States and follow in their steps by imposing increased sanctions. So far it isn’t clear what path he will take but if his recent statements are any indication it would appear that he prefers diplomacy over military confrontation.

On July 15th, while speaking at a leadership debate Johnson made statements that would indicate that the UK would not support US-led military strikes against Iran. Johnson also said that he didn’t see going to war with Iran as a sensible option. He went on to say that “Diplomacy must be the best way forward”. Jeremy Hunt UK Foreign secretary said he was on the same page as Johnson on the issue of Iran and warned of the risk of accidental war.

On July 22nd, 2019, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif spoke about the United Kingdom doing the bidding of the Trump Administration, while at a press conference in the Nicaraguan capital of Managua.

Zarif stated "The excuses that the United Kingdom and Gibraltar authorities provided for the confiscation of the ship that was carrying Iranian oil, it was not an Iranian ship, but it was a ship carrying Iranian oil, was clearly unfounded, the EU does not apply its rules to third parties, as a matter of principle and the United Kingdom on its way out of the EU is becoming holier than the pope, in doing things that the EU itself would not do and it has said publicly it would not do".

Zarif went on to say, "It was clear from the very beginning that the United Kingdom was doing the bidding for the Trump administration, this is not the first time the united kingdom started doing bidding for the United States administration, as soon as president Trump got elected and before he entered into office, the United Kingdom prevented implementation of agreements that we had reached with the previous government of the United states on behalf of President trump and the Iranian people have not forgotten that."

In a tweet that Zarif made on July 23rd he congratulated Johnson on his PM victory while making it clear that although Iran does not want confrontation, they will protect their coastline. The tweet said “The May governments seizure of Iranian oil at behest of the US is piracy, pure and simple. I congratulate my former counterpart, Boris Johnson on becoming UK Prime Minister. Iran does not seek confrontation. But we have 1,500 miles of Persian Gulf coastline. These are our waters and we will protect them.”

JCPOA

On July 28th, five world powers will be meeting in Vienna to discuss increased tensions in the Persian Gulf and how they can try to save the JCPOA. The nations attending are France, Britain, Germany, Russia and Iran. Last year U.S. President Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal and implemented increased sanctions on Iran.

Harsh sanctions have not only crippled the private and public sectors in Iran but have directly impacted the most vulnerable members of Iranian society. Iran has referred to these sanctions as “economic terrorism”. China has also used the same terminology when referring to the sanctions imposed by the United States against Iran. Three of the six members of the Iran Nuclear Deal have proposed a system to provide economic relief to Iran through a complicated barter system but recent activity in the Strait of Hormuz has had an impact on that.

It will be very interesting to see what path Johnson takes after this meeting. Iran has made it clear that it does not seek confrontation but will protect its coastline.

Iran will always be steadfast partner for multilateralism: FM Zarif

Zarif addressing Asia Cooperation Dialogue:

Tehran (ISNA) – Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif stressed, Asia in general and West Asia and the Persian Gulf region in particular are undergoing crises caused primarily by the lack of inclusive regional dialogue coupled with short-sighted adventures and the aggressive unilateralism of the current U.S. administration.

Mr. Zarif arrived in Doha, Qatar, Tuesday night and attended a luncheon hosted by Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

He made the remarks on Wednesday during a speech at the 16th ministerial meeting of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD).

Here is the full text of Mr. Zarif’s statement:

In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Mr. Chairman,

It is a great privilege to participate in this important forum of our Dialogue. Allow me to take this opportunity to first express my appreciation to the government and people of the State of Qatar for organizing this event in their marvelous capital of Doha, and for their gracious hospitality.

Distinguished Friends;

Since 2002, we have worked together as the community of Asian Cooperation Dialogue and have exhibited the spirit of amity in pursuit of a prosperous, functional and inclusive multilateral framework. The Islamic Republic of Iran views the Dialogue as a significant achievement of our continent, and is determined to promote its lofty values and develop its practical agendas envisioned in the ACD Vision for Asian Cooperation 2030, the ACD Blueprint for 2017 -2021, and the ACD Summit Declarations.

Embracing the aspirations of our peoples for a peaceful and prosperous region, my country has utilized all its capacities and advantages in national, regional and international arenas to move towards Pan-Asian Cooperation 2030 and building the Asian Community. In this regard and as the “Prime Mover of Culture and Tourism”, we have initiated and implemented various programs, events and projects to foster mutual understanding among our nations and to make Asia a prime, sustainable tourist destination: They include organizing a grand festival celebrating Hamadan as Asian Capital of Tourism (ACT), and conducting various cultural activities through the ACD Cultural Center in Tehran.

The position of the Islamic Republic of Iran on the North-South and East-West transit corridors—along with a well-developed transportation infrastructure—plays a crucial role in connecting members of our community to other regions and contributing to the “Pillar of Connectivity” of our forum. Conclusion of various transit agreements, including the Agreement on International North- South Transit Corridor, Ashkhabad International Transit Agreement and Chabahar Trilateral Agreement, along with bilateral arrangements, is all among the instruments that are promoting our shared target of connectivity.

Moreover, building upon our experience of hosting the Asian Clearing Union, a similar financial mechanism will become operational within the D-8 Organization to facilitate financial transactions between member states utilizing national currencies. We believe that the same arrangement can be adopted by the ACD in order to create institutional connectivity for an enabling business environment, and to reduce administrative and regulatory business roadblocks. 

Asian culture is imbued with noble values such as moderation, wisdom, inclusiveness, and peaceful co-existence. Our cooperation for the promotion of human prosperity and dignity affects not only Asian politics but reverberates in global politics through various multilateral arrangements.

For example, multilateral mechanisms such as ECO, D-8, IORA, ASEAN, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and SAARC can help promote the ACD’s objectives; individually or in an inter-agency context.

For ACD to play its constructive role and materialize its objectives, a functional, professional and well-represented Secretariat is of vital importance. As such, a working group of interested member states should be established to discuss ways and means of strengthening ACD through reform or restructuring. 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Our continent in general and West Asia and the Persian Gulf region in particular are undergoing crises caused primarily by the lack of inclusive regional dialogue coupled with short-sighted adventures and the aggressive unilateralism of the current U.S. administration.  

To address dialogue deficiency, I have for some time proposed the establishment of a Regional Dialogue Forum in the Persian Gulf. Every player in our region should understand that we are neighbors forever, and that the only way to secure peace and prosperity is through the recognition of a common destiny. And an acceptance that inclusive multilateral dialogue is the only way out of the current multidimensional crises facing us all.

We also need to collectively address the alarming unilateralism of the current U.S. administration. The imposition of the will of a single power over all other nations is an existential threat—sooner or later—for everyone. Unless we align our capabilities to secure multilateralism, a rising and aggressive unilateralist wave can cover the entire world, quickly replacing the rule of law with the rule of the jungle.   

Distinguished friends;

Let me assure you that in the relentless pursuit of dialogue and multilateralism, Iran will always be a steadfast partner.

Thank you for your attention.