Following Trump’s withdrawal, he announced that he would reimpose sanctions on Iran in two phases, beginning on August 4 and ending on November 4. By this point, any foreign company working in Iran would face penalties from the US market.
This has only added to the growing frustration on the Iranian people, who have been protesting the Regime since December. The Iranian people’s problems are vast, from high unemployment to arbitrary imprisonment to polluted drinking water, but they realise that the root cause of their problems is not the US, as the Regime tries to say, but the mullahs.
The Iranian regime’s president Hassan Rouhani is trying to save the nuclear deal, along with his European counterparts, in order to protect regime’s revenue. Europe seems eager to work with the mullahs, despite the warnings from the US, and the Iranian regime is utilising threats of restarting its nuclear programme to get Europe to abide by Iran’s plans.
The foreign ministers of Iran and the remaining signatories to the nuclear accord (France, Germany, the UK, China, and Russia) met on July 6 to discuss how to save the deal. But make no mistake, even if the Regime gets everything they want, this will not end the protests. That’s because the money props up the Regime’s military apparatus, rather than helping the poor.
Another thing that’s important to note is that the other signatories are not blind to Iran’s many issues, with France recently saying that Iran must stop threatening to withdraw from the deal and must recognise Israel’s right to exist. Considering that they can see the problems with Iran, it’s unclear why they would still want to work with Iran. Let’s not forget that Iran recently plotted to bomb an event held by the Iranian Resistance in Paris.
Even the unwarranted support from Europe has not stopped European companies from pulling out of Iran left, right and centre, including shipping magnates, energy firms, and steel manufacturers. They can see the writing on the wall and they’re keen to avoid US sanctions.
Over the past 40 years, appeasement of the terrorist Regime has not worked and Europe should follow America’s lead, in adopting a firm position against the Iranian regime’s belligerence.
