The US administration intends to achieve all of its Iran-related objectives during US President Donald Trump’s four years in power and take the issue off its agenda so that it can focus on advancing its Southeast Asia policies if the businessman-turned-politician is reelected, a political analyst said.
"Iran has actually become a major component of America’s strategic plans for Southeast Asia," Mehdi Motahharnia, a university professor and international affairs expert, also told the Iranian Diplomacy website.
“Donald Trump is seeking to bring the Iran case to a close by 2020 through detailed planning to be able to entirely devote its attention to Southeast Asia, particularly China, in a potential second four-year term,” he said, in an apparent reference to the fact that the world’s second-largest economy is considered the biggest US trade policy challenge.
Increased Pressure
Motahharnia believes that the US administration will continue to intensify pressure on Iran in the coming months with an eye on accomplishing its long-term policy goals in Southeast Asia.
“In 2019 and 2020, the White House will be striving to present Tehran as the arch-enemy of the United States under the attention-grabbing title of ‘a destructive entity that disturbs the new world order’,” he said, adding that Washington is hoping to see the Islamic Republic collapse from within.
The international affairs expert noted that the US will, therefore, be exploring new ways of presenting Iran as a rising threat to global peace and highlight western countries’ vulnerability and dependence on America for their security.
“Magnifying the perceived threat of Tehran to the security of the international community as one of the main elements of the US strategy will be on the agenda of the upcoming summit in Warsaw, Poland,” he said.
Motahharnia was referring to a global conference that the Central European country plans to jointly host with the United States on Feb. 13-14.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said recently that the conference will focus on Middle East stability and security, including the “important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence”.
“We will build out the global coalition” with countries “from Asia, from Africa, from Western Hemisphere countries, Europe too, the Middle East of course,” the chief US diplomat said.
Important Link
Motahharnia argues that the Poland summit is an “important link” in the chain of US actions against Iran, which are meant to isolate Iran economically and diplomatically and rally the world against the country.
The US president announced in May that he was breaking with European allies, Russia and China over a 2015 Iran nuclear deal and signed an executive order reimposing broad economic sanctions, with some exemptions, on any country or company that seeks to trade with the Islamic Republic.
European powers—Germany, France and Britain—have been under enormous pressure from Washington to follow its example and withdraw from the Iran accord, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
The political analyst added that the planned event in the Polish capital is also aimed at “building consensus between Iranian opposition groups inside and outside the country” as they could assist US efforts to tighten the screws on Tehran.
