The leaders of Britain, France and Germany yesterday said they remain committed to the Iran nuclear deal and are “concerned by the possible implications” of a US decision to no longer back it in its current form.
US President Donald Trump on Friday refused to formally certify that Tehran was complying with the 2015 accord, even though international inspectors said it is.
He threatened to “terminate” the nuclear deal signed between Iran and six world powers unless the US Congress passed stringent new sanctions.
Photo: AFP/HO/Iranian Presidency
British Prime Minister Theresa May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron issued a joint statement calling the nuclear deal “the culmination of 13 years of diplomacy.”
A top Russian lawmaker whose views usually reflect the Kremlin’s said that Trump’s position “can lead to the emergence of a real conflict.”
“The creation of an unstable situation can lead to Iran reacting,” the lawmaker said.
If the US terminates the Iran nuclear deal or reimposes sanctions on Tehran, it could result in Iran developing nuclear weapons and raise the danger of war close to Europe, German Minister for Foreign Affairs Sigmar Gabriel said.
“My big concern is that what is happening in Iran or with Iran from the US perspective will not remain an Iranian issue, but many others in the world will consider whether they themselves should acquire nuclear weapons too, given that such agreements are being destroyed,” Gabriel said.
“And then our children and grandchildren will grow up in a very dangerous world,” he said.
Iranians yesterday responded with anger and mockery to the bellicose criticism of their government by Trump.
Trump’s use of the phrase “Arabian Gulf” instead of “Persian Gulf” particularly hit a nerve in a country with a fierce nationalistic streak.
“Everyone knew Trump’s friendship was for sale to the highest bidder. We now know that his geography is too,” Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Twitter, referring to the US alliance with Iran’s regional rival, Saudi Arabia.
“Trump’s statements are so ridiculous that it actually works in Iran’s favor. Speaking about the ‘Arabian Gulf’ is taken very badly by people here,” said Abbas, a 40-year-old banker who only gave his first name.
“The reaction of the Europeans shows that the United States is isolated, and only Saudi Arabia and Israel have supported Trump,” he added.
In his White House speech on Friday, Trump reeled off a list of grievances committed by the “Iranian dictatorship, its sponsorship of terrorism and its continuing aggression in the Middle East and all around the world.”
For all the bluster, Trump’s strategy was not as tough as many had predicted.
It placed new sanctions on Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, but did not designate them a terrorist organization as trailed in the run-up to the speech.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani took to the airwaves shortly after Trump’s speech on Friday night, dismissing it as “nothing but the repetition of baseless accusations and swear words.”
“He has not studied international law. Can a president annul a multilateral international treaty on his own?” Rouhani said.
“If the [US] Congress goes ahead with new sanctions, then the deal is dead and Iran will restart its nuclear program and move forward full-steam ahead in all fields,” said Mohammad Marandi, a professor at the University of Tehran. “Iran will probably invest even more than before in order to show the Americans that they can’t get away with destroying the agreement.”
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2