Speaking in an interview with IRNA, Sengupta commented on US claim with regard to reinstating UN sanctions against Iran, saying: “The imposition of the sanctions on Iran, the so-called ‘snapback’ was unilateral and imposed despite opposition from European allies. There has been similar opposition from Russia and China.”
“Britain, France and Germany had sent a letter ahead of the US announcement saying that sanctions relief should continue beyond 20th September,” he added.
“The Trump administration is very much on its own in taking this action,” the UK journalist reiterated.
Elaborating on the measures taken by the European countries with regard to supporting Iran nuclear deal, he said: “The E3 has, as mentioned, argued against the sanctions and say they are doing what they can to keep the JCPOA alive.”
“The financial mechanism, INSTEX, had its first deal on trading with Iran a few months ago with medicine being sold to Iran by a German company.”
“President Macron, in particular, has been quite upbeat about INSTEX, but the fact remains that most major companies would be wary of using the system because of the threat of US secondary sanctions,” Sengupta noted.
“In reality, like so much else around the world, governments are waiting to see what happens in the US election.”
“It is now pretty clear that the current US administration is out of step with much of the international community, including Western allies, on not just JCPOA, but a lot of other issues,” he said in response to a question whether Trump administration’s anti-JCPOA policy would lead to confrontation with the international community in general and the Security Council in particular.
“But this is an administration which has turned away from a multilateral approach and is vocal about its unilateral stances. So it is unlikely that it will change its ways,” he stated.
When asked to comment on US next move against Iran after UNSC opposition, Sengupta said: “The natural expectation would be that the US would continue with draconian actions. We may see, for example, it agreeing to sell F-35 warplanes to the UAE, ashough the Israelis will object to that.”
“But then, if Trump does win, he may want to make a mark as a ‘peacemaker’ as he claims to have done with Iran. We will see different approach to the JCPOA under a Biden presidency,” he added.
Referring to the fact the arms embargo on Iran is now coming to an end under UNSC resolution 2231, he offered his view on what this means for Iran, china and Russia in one hand and US and Europe in the other.
He said: “Not quite in those terms. The European states did not support the extension of the arms embargo despite US pressure.”
“Having said that, the Western states have said they do not want countries like Russia and China to sell Iran advanced offensive weapons,” he said.
The senior journalistn went on to note that: “There is also a feeling in Western capitals that Iran would not be able to afford expensive advanced weapons because of its economic problems.”
Commenting on US policy toward Iran after upcoming presidential elections, he said: “Biden may well try to resuscitate the JCPOA, albeit with some modifications. We’ll need to see how this evolves with the rest of his policies.”
“It’s worth bearing in mind that one aim of ‘snapback’ by the Trump administration may well have been to scupper Biden on JCPOA in the expectation/hope that Iran would react by pulling out of the nuclear deal,” Sengupta added.
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