President Trump and the Two Sides of Iran
By Jason Sibert
President Donald Trump has militarized our Iran policy and heightened tensions between our country and Iran.
First, President Trump withdrew from President Barack Obama’s Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action arms control agreement which was intended to control Iran’s nuclear arsenal. Trump next instated punishing sanctions on Iran last year and then tightened them last month, ordering all countries importing oil to Iran to stop or face sanctions.
Tensions between the United States and Iran soared after the Trump Administration sent B-52 bombers and Patriot missiles to the Middle East. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan confirmed today that the Defense Department was considering sending more troops to the Middle East to contain Iran, according to reports.
Naturally, Iran has responded to the administration’s actions. Iran President Hassan Rouhani has said his country will not abandon its goals, even if attacked. Iran’s defense chief – Major General Mohammad Baqueri – said today that any enemy adventurism would meet with a crushing response, said reports.
Geo-political tensions have existed between Iran and the United States since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 when U.S. ally Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown and Sayyid Ruhollah Khomeini came to power and instituted an Islamic theocracy. Then came the Iran hostage crises which made matters worse. The country has remained outside of the U.S. orbit since the revolution. Iran’s theocratic government and support of terrorist factions against Israel make it a state that flaunts the idea international law and norms.
From the beginning of the Islamic Revolution, there were fissures in Iranian politics between hardliners, pragmatists and reformers. Demonstrations broke out in January of 2018 against Rouhani, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Chief Justice Sadeq Larijani. This shows the body politic isn’t afraid to stand up to the leadership. When Rouhani ran for president in 2017, he promised reform and promised to have women and minorities in his cabinet. Westerners strongly preferred his candidacy. On the other hand, his presidency has brought little in the way of reform. However, the fact that he had to promise reform for election means many in Iran long for something different.
Going back to the 1990’s, Mohammad Khatami was elected president on a reformist platform. There is a political faction in Iran called Iranian Reformist which supported, and still supports, the ideas of Khatami. According to surveys, 28 percent of Iranians qualify as reformist. There are 18 political parties in the reformist movement. Mohammad Reza Aref, Khatami’s vice-president, leads the reform faction in parliament. These factions promote ideas like rule-of-law, democracy, and participation of citizens in government – Western ideas.
The reformers in Iran aren’t adverse to reaching out to the rest of the world and setting international norms. Rouhanni was president when the country entered into the JCPOA and Khatami made overtures to other countries in his years in power. Political factions in Iran who favor reform and engagement with the outside world that could lead to stronger international laws against nuclear weapons are unlikely to be empowered when outside forces are engaging in shows of militarism. Which side, inward-looking Iran or outward-looking Iran, will win?
Jason Sibert is the executive director of the Peace Economy Project.
