The European Union Failed to Reach Agreement on New Sanctions Against Iran

On Monday, April 15, the European Union was unable to agree on imposing new sanctions against Iran to persuade the United States not to withdraw from the JCPOA. Italy and Austria are the main opponents of these sanctions. According to Reuters, European countries are concerned that even with penalties against Tehran for its missile program and its role in the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump may still seek to exit the nuclear agreement with Iran. Some diplomats at the EU foreign ministers' meeting in Luxembourg stated that this failure means the EU is unlikely to meet Trump's deadline for correcting the 'flaws' in the JCPOA. The EU wishes to preserve the nuclear agreement made in July 2015 between Iran and six world powers, including the European Troika - France, Germany, and the UK - while Trump believes the JCPOA is one of the worst agreements he has ever seen and that its 'catastrophic flaws' must be addressed, or else Washington will likely withdraw from it. He has given Germany, France, and the UK until May 11 to amend the agreement; otherwise, he will not extend the suspension of sanctions against Iran under the JCPOA. In response to Trump's criticisms, diplomats from France, Germany, and the UK proposed sanctions against 'militias and commanders' from Iran fighting alongside Bashar al-Assad's forces in Syria. They hoped to hold Iran accountable in this context to convince Trump to remain in the JCPOA, but faced opposition from Italy and Austria during their meeting on Monday. One European diplomat told Reuters, 'In any case, the nuclear agreement may be dead, so why should we provoke Iranian hardliners and lose our chances of securing contracts in this country?' However, another diplomat from the European Troika stated that the EU has four more weeks: 'We are clearly making progress, although we have little time.' A third diplomat emphasized that it is 'unlikely' the EU will be able to impose new restrictions on Iran by mid-May - one month from now. Despite the EU's overall desire to maintain the JCPOA, the foreign ministers of the 28 member states agreed to work on this issue in the coming days and weeks. Heiko Maas, the German foreign minister, stated, 'The issue will remain on the agenda.' Ricard Yuzuiak, a reporter for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in the EU, who attended the meeting in Luxembourg, noted that the most resistance to imposing further sanctions against Iran comes from Italy. Last week, the EU extended existing sanctions against Iranian officials accused of human rights violations. Italy is a significant obstacle to new sanctions against Iran. In a meeting held about two weeks ago in Brussels, disagreements over these new sanctions became apparent, and this resistance has continued, although it has diminished. There are still countries that do not wish to increase sanctions on Iran, with Italy being the most important. Italy is a key country in the EU and has made significant investments in Iran, especially following the implementation of the JCPOA, and has no desire for these sanctions. The situation is similar for Austria, Sweden, and somewhat Greece, but to a lesser degree, and these countries may be satisfied with sanctions. Further discussions on this matter will likely take place in the European ministers' meeting expected next week, with a decision to be made before May 11 - the U.S. deadline. Ricard Yuzuiak states that new sanctions, which include adding several individuals and entities to the existing sanctions list similar to human rights sanctions, may be softened to appease Italy. He adds that it seems these sanctions are designed to show the United States that it should continue to implement the JCPOA, but questions remain in this regard. The three European countries may have to remove some individuals from the proposed sanctions list to bring Italy on board. I think that although it is difficult, they will ultimately succeed, but one cannot be 100% sure, as a year ago, Europeans wanted to impose sanctions against Russia and Iran due to their roles in Syria, and Italy vetoed that sanction, and the Europeans could not persuade Italy, and this could happen again. One should not underestimate Rome's resistance.