Britain's New PM Must Get Real on Iran

[] [Britain's New PM Must Get Real on Iran]( by Con Coughlin • July 18, 2022 at 5:00 am [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [WhatsApp]( [Telegram]( [Send]( [Print]( - [U]nder [Boris Johnson's] premiership, Britain backed attempts by other Western signatories to the deal -- the US, France and Germany -- to revive the JCPOA in the face of mounting evidence that Tehran has absolutely no interest in abiding by its commitments. - In the latest indication that Iran is in breach of its JCPOA commitments, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN-sponsored body responsible for monitoring Tehran's nuclear activities, has reported that Iran has recently escalated its uranium enrichment activities at its underground Fordow facility. - Experts say this will enable Iran to enrich uranium to weapons-grade levels without being detected by IAEA inspection teams. - Consequently, with Mr Johnson soon to depart from Downing Street, there is a golden opportunity for his successor to adopt a new, more robust policy towards Tehran, one that clearly identifies the ayatollahs as posing a clear and present danger to the security of Britain and its allies. - The scale of the Iranian threat is reflected in last week's statement by US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan that Iran had agreed to supply Russia with hundreds of drones to support its war effort in Ukraine. - The revelations concerning Iran's deepening involvement in the Ukraine conflict should certainly concern the British government.... - The recent upsurge in Iranian military activity, both in the Arabian Gulf and Ukraine, provides incontrovertible evidence that, far from trying to reach an agreement with the West, Iran appears determined to intensify hostilities. - Britain, together with other signatories to the JCPOA, must base its policy on the assumption that Iran is a hostile regime, not one that has any interest in reaching a peaceful accommodation with the West. Britain Prime Minister Boris Johnson's dramatic removal from office gives a superb opportunity to adopt a new policy towards Iran, one that takes proper account of the deadly threat the Iranian regime poses. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) Boris Johnson's dramatic removal from office gives Britain a superb opportunity to adopt a new policy towards Iran, one that takes proper account of the deadly threat the Iranian regime poses to Britain and its allies. From his time as foreign secretary to his more recent tenure as prime minister, Mr Johnson's attitude towards Iran and its illicit nuclear activities can most charitably be described as equivocal. During the Trump administration, Mr Johnson liked to give senior American officials working on the Iran brief the impression that he was deeply sceptical about the value of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the deal negotiated by then US President Barack Obama that was supposed to limit Iran's nuclear activities. [Continue Reading Article]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [RSS]( [Donate]( Copyright © Gatestone Institute, All rights reserved. You are subscribed to this list as {EMAIL} You can change how you receive these emails: [Update your subscription preferences]( or [Unsubscribe from this list]( [Gatestone Institute]( 14 East 60 St., Suite 705, New York, NY 10022