France Is Playing the Iranian Card To Restore Its International Influence

Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, London, August 22

A high-ranking official close to French President Emmanuel Macron recently revealed that the latter has a strong conviction that France, whose global influence has been on the decline in recent decades, has a unique window of opportunity to restore its global power by serving as the key gateway to Iran. According to this source, France believes that, following the lifting of the sanctions on the Iranian regime, France can play a pivotal role in the rehabilitation of the Iranian economy, taking the place of other countries like China, India and Russia. This is primarily due to Macron’s good relationships with the Iranian regime and the fact that he will serve for another six years following his reelection. This is the reason for which France has always taken the initiative to find solutions and remove obstacles between Iran and the United States, both in public and behind the scenes. The official also indicated that President Macron believes that importing Iranian oil and gas is the only way for Europe to succeed in maintaining its sanctions on Russia, following the invasion of Ukraine. Indeed, French diplomats have doubled down on their efforts to convince other European countries of the necessity of reaching a new nuclear agreement with Iran that would pave the way for the removal of all international sanctions. It’s possible that the French position represents the view of most EU member states, who have a real fear of oil and gas prices this coming winter, following the suspension of Russian production. The rise in energy prices has led to an increase in the inflation rate to nearly 10% and it is expected to reach more than 22% in the middle of next year if a solution isn’t identified. This will exacerbate the demands of working-class Europeans to increase their basic income, which may send the European economy into a vicious circle with catastrophic results. For these reasons, some experts believe that the Islamic Republic is in a superior position compared to Europe and the United States when it comes to reaching a new deal. There are so many global crises to deal with today, that it would simply make sense for the West to put Iran’s nuclear program behind and flood the markets with oil, even if the non-nuclear crisis with Iran undoubtedly continues. Sadly, those who oppose the deal will quickly realize that they lost the battle, since Europe’s interest in self-preservation outweighs any other consideration. Moral principles have no room in this equation; only considerations of money and power. – Huda Al Husseini (translated by Asaf Zilberfarb)