he Europeans are arguing with the Russians and the Chinese, but are also squabbling among themselves over how to deal with Iran.
The Americans are hectoring everyone. France and Germany worry about
London breaking ranks and joining Washington’s “maximum pressure”
campaign against Iran, a move which would destroy faltering efforts to
salvage the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the nuclear deal forged over years of diplomacy and actively being sabotaged by the United States.
Meanwhile, day by day, Iran’s nuclear programme grows. Last weekend Iran surpassed the threshold of 1,200kg of stockpiled reactor-grade uranium which, if Tehran were to make a headlong rush towards weaponisation, could be used to fuel a single nuclear warhead.
“Iran is increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium with full
speed,” Ali Asghar Zarean, an Iranian atomic energy official, boasted
last weekend.
Though the threat of an all-out war has receded following the assassination of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and retaliatory airstrikes on a US airbase in Iraq, experts and diplomats say the crisis between Washington and Tehran is far from over.
The situation remains fraught with many dangers, a potentially
explosive slow-burning crisis which could eventually overshadow all
others.
“There’s a consensus that we want things to cool down a bit,” a senior European foreign policy official tells The Independent. “We may end up in a doomsday scenario, but we’re not there yet. We’re trying to avoid that.”
Indeed, as bad as the situation with Iran is, it could easily get far worse. The potential sources of friction between Washington and Tehran and their respective allies are many.
Iranian-backed forces and allies in Syria are conquering Idlib province in an unrelenting offensive that has “appalled and horrified” Washington, James Jeffrey, US Syria and Isis envoy, told reporters on Thursday.
Iranian-backed forces and allies in Syria are conquering Idlib province in an unrelenting offensive that has “appalled and horrified” Washington, James Jeffrey, US Syria and Isis envoy, told reporters on Thursday.
In Yemen, Iranian-allied Houthi fighters are holding their own against US-backed Saudi forces and their local allies. And in Iraq and Lebanon, Iran’s allies are suppressing protests tacitly supported by Washington.
Iranian lawmakers and officials, insisting they are being backed into a corner, are also increasingly warning they could leave the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the five-decades-old agreement by which countries forego atomic weapons in exchange for access to peaceful nuclear technology. Western diplomats are not taking the threat lightly.
Read more: Staving off ‘doomsday’: As America barks and Europe drifts, Iran’s nuclear programme and belligerence grow | The Independent
Meanwhile, day by day, Iran’s nuclear programme grows. Last weekend Iran surpassed the threshold of 1,200kg of stockpiled reactor-grade uranium which, if Tehran were to make a headlong rush towards weaponisation, could be used to fuel a single nuclear warhead.
Though the threat of an all-out war has receded following the assassination of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and retaliatory airstrikes on a US airbase in Iraq, experts and diplomats say the crisis between Washington and Tehran is far from over.
“There’s a consensus that we want things to cool down a bit,” a senior European foreign policy official tells The Independent. “We may end up in a doomsday scenario, but we’re not there yet. We’re trying to avoid that.”
Indeed, as bad as the situation with Iran is, it could easily get far worse. The potential sources of friction between Washington and Tehran and their respective allies are many.
Iranian-backed forces and allies in Syria are conquering Idlib province in an unrelenting offensive that has “appalled and horrified” Washington, James Jeffrey, US Syria and Isis envoy, told reporters on Thursday.
Iranian-backed forces and allies in Syria are conquering Idlib province in an unrelenting offensive that has “appalled and horrified” Washington, James Jeffrey, US Syria and Isis envoy, told reporters on Thursday.
In Yemen, Iranian-allied Houthi fighters are holding their own against US-backed Saudi forces and their local allies. And in Iraq and Lebanon, Iran’s allies are suppressing protests tacitly supported by Washington.
Iranian lawmakers and officials, insisting they are being backed into a corner, are also increasingly warning they could leave the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the five-decades-old agreement by which countries forego atomic weapons in exchange for access to peaceful nuclear technology. Western diplomats are not taking the threat lightly.
Read more: Staving off ‘doomsday’: As America barks and Europe drifts, Iran’s nuclear programme and belligerence grow | The Independent
No comments:
Post a Comment