Al-Sharq al-Awsat, London, August 17
When the nuclear deal with Iran was signed in July 2015, the United States had two different paths to choose between: halting Tehran’s enrichment of uranium, or taming its militant activity in the region. The biggest shortcoming of the deal, its critics claimed, was its failure to achieve both goals at once. Obama’s team was so keen to reach an understanding with the Iranians, that they failed to foresee the consequences of their deal just a few years into the future. Now, two years later, the grim results of ignoring the second goal — the one related to Iran’s expansionist agenda — are well evident. In Syria alone, over 50,000 Iranian-trained militiamen have been fighting. This figure does not include Revolutionary Guard forces operating in the country, or those sent to other countries, such as Yemen, to spew violence and terror. Recently, however, Congress has begun examining the possibility of reinstating American sanctions against Iran, in response to its growing abuse of human rights in the region. This is causing the Iranians a lot of anxiety and fear, and pushed several notable figures to threaten to relaunch their country’s nuclear program. Both the Iranians and Europeans, who have benefited greatly from their new trade channels with each other, are unhappy about this. The problem is that Iran now has the upper hand. It achieved its goal of becoming, and remaining, a hegemonic power in the region. At the same time, it may relaunch its nuclear program and challenge the United States and Israel. Thus, Iran’s threat should not be taken lightheartedly. Teheran is used to achieving its goals through violence and chaos. And it will continue doing so in the future as well. – Abd al-Rahman al-Rashed