The other Iran
In its dealings with Iran, the American approach is marked by a lack of historical awareness. This was already the case under previous presidents, but it has worsened under Donald Trump. A commentary by Karl von Habsburg.
For those who know Iran, there is no doubt that of President Trump’s many disastrous decisions, the withdrawal from the so-called ‘Iran deal’ (JCPOA) is probably one of the most consequential. Even during the negotiations for this agreement, signed in Vienna in 2015, it was repeatedly necessary to remind President Obama’s representatives that Iran is a historically grown, non-Arab, regional great power, and not some backward microstate that can be pushed around at will. Hardly any American today is familiar with the name Mossadegh, a Persian statesman who was removed with the help of the CIA. In Iran, every small child knows the name and the role the USA played in his elimination. An intervention that America (and Great Britain) has not been forgiven for to this day.
In general, Iran is completely misjudged in the West, and most media outlets do not exactly contribute to enlightenment. One gets the impression here that Iran is a theocracy whose main concerns are the suppression of women and the support of terrorist organisations. Who knows that a government committee is currently dealing with the abolition of the compulsory wearing of headscarves? With Saudi Arabia, people go into raptures when women are allowed to get a driving licence. For the women of Iran, such trifles are a matter of course. I do not wish to create the impression that women in Iran have all rights; I only want to highlight the difference in perspective.
Religious veil over totalitarian traits
In terms of its political structure, Iran is a socialist country with communist-totalitarian traits. This includes five-year plans and other anti-economic measures. Over everything lies a religious whitewash that is overvalued in the West. Economic sanctions certainly do not contribute to stability in the Middle East. Of the sanctions to date that hurt the most in Iran following Donald Trump’s termination of the JCPOA agreement, textiles, and thus carpets, are affected. In November, oil and oil products will be added to the sanctions list, followed shortly by the cancellation of the SWIFT agreement. This will mean that communication between European banks and institutions in Iran can be prohibited by the USA, and thus any bank doing business with Iran can be punished by the United States. This also reveals a serious failure on Europe’s part. When the Euro was introduced, there was a failure to introduce a European means of communication and payment system for banks that could function without US control. At the time, it apparently seemed impossible that a situation would ever arise in which the USA and the EU would hold different positions, with the result that the USA suddenly sanctions European banks and companies via SWIFT, even though their business is completely legal under European laws. We will likely see an interesting flourishing of cryptocurrencies and other alternative payment methods over the coming months to compensate for this error. Barter trade will also experience a new boom. Iran has already experienced several decades of sanctions; it knows how to prepare.
The article originally appeared on the website of Karl von Habsburg.
