Moreover and parallel to recent sanctions, which must be executed immediately and without any loopholes, the Iranian people’s organized opposition, resembled in the National Council of Resistance of Iran, should be recognized. This will pave the path for regime change by this coalition without war or military intervention.
Thanks to years of Western appeasement in the
face of Iran’s belligerence across the Middle East, evidence of Tehran’s
dangerous footprints are now visible in several countries across the region,
including even Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.
The Trump administration, however, has made it
quite vivid its adoption of a firm approach. This stance, signaled in the
historic May conference in Riyadh, is long overdue and should be enhanced by
Washington supporting the Iranian people’s desire for regime change.
A history of devastation
Iran has a long record of hostility against
neighboring countries and US interests in the Middle East. The 1983 bombings
targeting the US Embassy and barracks in Beirut, the Khobar Towers attack in
1996, all climaxed in the support Iran provided for Shiite proxies and the
Sunni Taliban in their campaign against US-led coalition forces in Afghanistan
and Iraq.
In parallel form, the Lebanese Hezbollah and
Hamas, two known terrorist groups, have for over 30 years enjoyed contributions
from Tehran to fuel sectarianism throughout the Middle East and carry out
terrorist attacks.
The Obama administration handed Iraq over to Iran in a silver
plate through a strategic mistake of prematurely pulling out all US troops. This
paved the path for Iran to further export its “revolution” through a convenient
medium of extremist proxies.
The West can literally be accused of standing
aside and watching Iran’s aggressive policy. This has rendered a slate of
countries, including Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iraq, Saudi Arabia,
Syria and Yemen feel threatened and/or left utterly devastated from Iran’s
meddling on their soil.
Troubling activities
Of late, Iran has been reported to send further weapons and
narcotics to Yemen’s Houthis. These drugs are sold to provide income for Iran’s
supported militias on the ground in the flashpoint country south of Saudi
Arabia, Tehran’s archenemy in the region.
Members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) are present in
Yemen also to instruct and guide the Houthis in assembling weapons smuggled
into the country by Tehran.
“For the
last six months the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has begun using
waters further up the Gulf between Kuwait and Iran as it looks for new ways to
beat an embargo on arms shipments to fellow Shi'ites in the Houthi movement,”
Reuters cited Western and Iranian sources.
“Using this new route, Iranian ships transfer equipment to
smaller vessels at the top of the Gulf, where they face less scrutiny. The
transshipments take place in Kuwaiti waters and in nearby international
shipping lanes, the sources said.”
The Iranians are also taking provocative measures against the US
Navy in the same region recently, viewed by analysts as actions to learn the
limits of US President Donald Trump. On July 26th an armed Iranian patrol boat
closed within less than 150 meters of the USS Thunderbolt, yielding back only
in response to warning shots fired by a US Navy ship.
Such developments are reasons why Trump contacted his French
counterpart Emmanuel Macron “to explore how to increase cooperation in
addressing the ongoing crises in Syria and Iraq and countering Iranian malign
influence,” according to a White House readout.
Positive steps forward
Despite the utterly wrong decision of EU foreign policy chief
Federica Mogherini visiting Tehran for Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s
inauguration, the Trump administration is sending push-back signals and making
Iran learn its aggressions will not go without cost.
This is a necessary and welcomed shift in Washington’s foreign
policy.
President Trump has signed into law a strong bipartisan
Congressional initiative imposing strict sanctions on Iran, Russia and North
Korea. The IRGC is now considered a Specially Designated Global Terrorist
group. Considering the Guards’ control over at least 40 percent of Iran’s
entire economy, this raises the stakes for companies considering doing business
with Tehran.
It would be wise to reconsider investing in Iran’s $400 billion
economy and ponder placing one’s bets in other regional countries, or say, the
United States’ $19 trillion establishment.
And in
news that most certainly raised eyebrows in Tehran, Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr visited Saudi Arabia recently
and called for the controversial Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Units in his
country to be dissolved now that the Islamic State has been defeated.
The nuclear deal
High hopes were placed in the nuclear deal sealed between the
P5+1 and Iran, which Obama hoped to leave behind as his foreign policy legacy.
Two years down this road it has become vivid that Iran’s
behavior has not changed, to say the least. In fact, Tehran’s support for
Hezbollah and other extremist entities have escalated. Iran’s role in the
Middle East, namely Syria, Iraq and Yemen have been horrifically destructive.
The Trump administration can lead the international community in
instituting the first real and effective initiative against the Iranian regime.
Any trade with Tehran should hinge on:
- ending all nuclear initiatives and providing true “anytime, anywhere” access
to all suspected sites, including military facilities.
Moreover and parallel to recent sanctions, which must be
executed immediately and without any loopholes, the Iranian people’s organized
opposition, resembled in the National Council of Resistance of Iran, should be
recognized. This will pave the path for regime change by this coalition without
war or military intervention.
Failure in this regard is tantamount to aiding Tehran’s regime.
