PHOTO: Reuters. Family photo of the Warsaw Summit
On February 13, 60 nations gathered in Warsaw, Poland to attend the Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East. Most European nations sent only low-level delegations, and EU Foreign Policy Chief, Lebanon, Palestine, and Russia refused to attend, as the summit was expected to target Iran.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a simultaneous summit in the resort of Sochi with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the future of Syria.
Since his inauguration, President Trump has walked away from what he called a “terrible” Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA, more commonly known as the Iran Nuclear Deal) negotiated by his predecessor Barack Obama in which Iran constrained its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief.
The European Union has defied Trump by not only backing the accord, with which UN inspectors say Iran is complying, but setting up a financial tool for European firms to skirt US sanctions and keep doing business in the Middle East’s second most populous country.
Earlier on January 31, Britain, France and Germany launched a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) called Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) to bypass US sanctions on Iran. The new institution received the formal endorsement of all 28 EU members.
INSTEX will support legitimate European trade with Iran, focusing initially on the sectors most essential to the Iranian population, such as pharmaceutical, medical devices, and agri-food goods.
Iran welcomed INSTEX as the “first step” toward dialogue and stability, but Deputy Speaker of Iran’s Parliament Ali Montahari commented that on February 3 that conditions tied to the implementation – such as approving Financial Action Task Force (FATF)’s requirements in Iran, may result in interference in Iran’s domestic affairs.
BY MSEAP Cyber Secretariat (mseap@assembly.go.kr) |
