Iran is currently in talks with the UK, France, Germany, Russia, China and the United States over the country’s nuclear programme, with the aim of reaching a framework for a comprehensive deal before the end of March. Cornelius Adebahr writes that while an agreement would be a major diplomatic achievement, the EU should look to go much further than the nuclear issue in its relations with the country. He argues that wider cooperation with Iran, where possible, would be in the EU’s long-term strategic interest

Adebahr, Cornelius

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16/03/2015Wider cooperation with Iran would be in the EU’s strategicinterestblogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2015/03/16/wider-cooperation-with-iran-would-be-in-the-eus-strategic-interest/Iran is currently in talks with the UK, France, Germany, Russia, China and the United States overthe country’s nuclear programme, with the aim of reaching a framework for a comprehensive dealbefore the end of March. Cornelius Adebahr writes that while an agreement would be a majordiplomatic achievement, the EU should look to go much further than the nuclear issue in its relationswith the country. He argues that wider cooperation with Iran, where possible, would be in the EU’slong-term strategic interest.Imagine if there is a nuclear deal with Iran and it still does not change much. That is, of course, toostark a view on what would still be a – maybe the – major diplomatic achievement of the past decade or so. Yetseeing a deal this way can also help to put things into perspective, especially for the Europeans who havechampioned diplomacy ever since France, Germany, and the United Kingdom – the E3 – began talks with Iran overits nuclear programme back in 2003.The truth is, regardless of whether the latest round of talks will end with a comprehensive agreement, a breakdown,or some sort of extension of the status quo, things will only change gradually. Even the “deal” that some are hopingfor and others dread would not turn Iran into an ally over night, but merely enlarge the extent of wider engagementwith the country.Here’s why the EU has a genuine interest in such a broadening of its policy on Iran. First, and unlike the UnitedStates, the EU and its member states have maintained their ties with the Islamic Republic, working on human rightsas much as on economic exchanges, despite an overall strained relationship. Second, the country’s location at thecrossroads between Europe, Russia, Central Asia, and South Asia makes it necessary to take into account Iran’slegitimate strategic concerns. Third, the country is a solid state with functioning institutions, an industrial base, and asociety imbued by a strong national sentiment. And in spite of repression by the regime, civil society remains strong.Finally, Iranian people are rather pro-Western and not anti-American. These are certainly assets in an otherwisevolatile region.Therefore, whatever the outcome of the nuclear talks, the EU must develop a more comprehensive policy thataccounts for both Iran’s role in the region and broader global issues of EU concern. Beyond preventing Iran fromacquiring a nuclear bomb (which is what the agreement is for), there are three main areas on which the EU shouldfocus.First, the EU should seek to reinforce the global nonproliferation regime. The EU should ensure that the inspectionstandards set by an Iran deal serve as an example for broader nonproliferation eﬀorts, while being careful to stressthat indigenous enrichment should not be the new norm. This means leading a drive to get all signatories of the Non-Proliferation Treaty to sign the Additional Protocol for enhanced inspection, while proposing concrete steps towardsthe goal of establishing a WMD-free zone in the Middle East: for instance by starting with a regional ban onbiological and chemical weapons or even a subregional WMD-free zone around the Persian Gulf. In any case, if Iranwants to be taken seriously as a civilian nuclear power, it will have to adhere to international standards of nuclearsafety regulation.Second, the EU should aim to increase outreach to civil society. The promotion of democracy and human rights iscentral to the EU’s foreign policy identity, yet it often comes second or third on its list of policy priorities. The EUshould seek to reach out to civil society actors in Iran, focusing on press freedom, labour rights, and Iran’s violations1/3Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, during EU talks,Credit: European External Action Service (CC-BY-SA-ND-NC-3.0)of its own domestic laws and the UN treaties it has signed. In addition, dialogue and engagement should provefruitful on issues such as technical cooperation on environmental questions, earthquake assistance, and refugees,as well as increased exchanges in sports, culture, religion, science, and higher education.Third, the EU should step up cooperation with Iran on regional conﬂict resolution. Iran has a role to play in a numberof regional challenges, but so far has been largely excluded from international eﬀorts to tame those conﬂicts. In lightof the very diﬀerent views on the civil war in Syria, this most pressing conﬂict is unlikely to see immediatecooperation, if only because Iran has become a quasi-combatant on the ground.Instead, the EU – together with the United States – should start with the easier cases, such as working with Iran tomaintain stability in Afghanistan or increase maritime security in the Persian Gulf. They should then move graduallyto more diﬃcult issues, such as tactically cooperating in the ﬁght against Islamic State and, eventually, working toend the war in Syria. The EU’s role is to facilitate regionally owned arrangements, not to impose an order fromoutside, while providing political, technical, and economic support if requested.Improving EU-Iran relations in practiceTo achieve these aims, the EU should improve its organisational capacity and step up its presence in the country aswell as continue its close cooperation with the UnitedStates.The European External Action Service (EEAS) shouldimmediately set up a task force that brings togetherthe diﬀerent desks currently dealing with Iran. Its aimshould be to explore, and later implement, areas ofimmediate cooperation as well as prepare for longer-term engagement. The task force should encompassall relevant desks, including those outside the EEASsuch as the European Commission DirectorateGeneral for Trade. An EU special representativeshould head this Iran task force and should liaiseclosely with the EU negotiators and the Iranians. InIran itself, the EU must establish a presence, possiblystarting with an EU special representative ﬁeld oﬃcethat could be transformed into a fully-ﬂedged EUdelegation.The EU should also work more closely with theUnited States, beyond the well-established cooperation between their negotiating teams. Broader outreach to U.S.policymakers and the American think tank community is necessary given that the EU’s role on the Iran ﬁle isgenerally poorly appreciated by the American public and that Congress plays a crucial part in many decisionsregarding U.S. sanctions. In a concerted eﬀort, the EU and its member states should work with the administrationand Congress to secure the necessary U.S. support for sanctions relief if a comprehensive agreement is achieved –or to devise a new common approach to Iran if the talks break down.All concerns about Iran’s nuclear programme have to be resolved by a clear, veriﬁable agreement. At the sametime, the country’s pivotal regional role and genuine strategic concerns have to be factored into current eﬀorts tostabilise the Levant and the Gulf. Iran is much more than its controversial nuclear programme, which is why the EUshould look for broader terms of engagement.With interest-based, not aspirational, policies, the EU should test the Iranian regime in a period of uncertainty.Brussels should provide Tehran with an incentive to prove its willingness to play by the rules. This could pave the2/3way for a new bargain that Europe has every interest to explore.Please read our comments policy before commenting .Note: This article is based on a Carnegie Paper, jointly written by Marc Otte, Nathalie Tocci, and Cornelius Adebahr.The article gives the views of the author, and not the position of EUROPP – European Politics and Policy, nor of theLondon School of Economics.Shortened URL for this post: http://bit.ly/1GbﬂBs _________________________________About the authorCornelius AdebahrDr Cornelius Adebahr is a political analyst and entrepreneur based in Washington, DC and Berlin.He is an associate in the Europe Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace inWashington, DC, an associate fellow of the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), Berlin,and an adjunct assistant professor at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University,Washington, DC.3/3

Wider cooperation with Iran would be in the EU’s strategic interest

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