Iran’s efforts to reengage with West face new challenges
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Iran’s efforts to reengage with West face new challenges
Washington Post-Sept 14th2024
Still, regional diplomats and officials say, the developments this week are unlikely to derail Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s efforts to bring his country out of isolation, which one Arab diplomat described as the country’s “only option.”
“In this case, time is not on Iran’s side,” said the diplomat, who meets regularly with Iranian officials, and who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject. He said Iran appears eager to secure some kind of progress toward engagement to relieve domestic and international pressures.
When Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the sanctions Tuesday, he addressed Iran’s diplomatic overtures directly.
“Iran’s new president and foreign minister have repeatedly said that they want to restore engagement with Europe, they want to receive sanctions relief,” he said. “Destabilizing actions like these will achieve exactly the opposite.”
The sanctions appear milder than expected, when European countries warned Iran that ballistic missile transfers to Russia approximated a “red line” in the Ukraine war. The measures largely target Iran’s civil aviation and could take months to go into effect.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the weapons transfer allegations were a “vile propaganda ploy and a blatant lie.”
The ballistic missile deal with Russia, which the Treasury Department alleged was negotiated long before Pezeshkian took power, is an example of how Iranian policy often plays out on two tracks, according to Nicole Grajewski, a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment.
“While civilian leadership may push for reform or diplomacy, the military and security apparatus maintains its own long-term goals, often independent of the political leadership,” said Grajewski, who is the author of the book “Russia and Iran: Partners in Defiance from Syria to Ukraine.”
Just a few months into his term, Pezeshkian is juggling multiples crises at home and abroad.
The war in Gaza has dragged on for nearly a year, and in that time Israel has traded nearly daily fire with Hezbollah, Iran’s most powerful allied militia. Domestically, Iran’s economy has repeatedly hit record lows. And widespread frustration over the use of heavy-handed tactics by security forces continues to simmer.
After the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July, Iran vowed a “decisive” response. That was over a month ago. U.S. officials believe that every day that passes lessens the chances of a major incident and escalation, although additional American military assets remain in the region as a deterrent.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/09/14/iran-engagement-russia-israel-pezeshkian/
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