Iran’s economy booming despite US “maximum pressure” policy
US President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” policy has led to immunity for Iran’s economy, leading US magazine has reported stressing that the approach has eliminated the chances for talks with the Islamic Republic.
Share It :
The Foreign Policy cited reports that Iran’s economy may experience growth this year despite the coronavirus pandemic.
"Iran has proven resilient in the face of US pressure. While many ordinary Iranians are suffering, the economy is not in total free fall, as many in Washington hoped for.
Instead, the country has shown signs of economic recovery, with domestic production and employment increasing," the report said.
The US unleashed the so-called maximum pressure campaign against Iran in 2018, when it left the 2015 multilateral nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Following its withdrawal, Washington targeted the Iranian nation with the “toughest ever” economic sanctions.
The report also stressed that Trump’s policy decisions have closed the potential for diplomacy and marginalized those backing Iran-US talks.
"Trump’s bellicose rhetoric and actions have not made Iran more inclined to do a deal, but they have undermined any Iranian officials who supported negotiations with the United States," it added.
The Foreign Policy report further compared the remarks made by Iran's President Hassan Rouhani in February, one month after the US assassination of top Iranian anti-terror commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, with those in the lead-up to the prisoners swap with the US in December 2019.
Rouhani’s rhetoric around the time of the December swap suggested that he was more open to a new round of negotiations with the US, but Soleimani's assassination crushed the hope for any diplomatic progress, it said.
The report also quoted Rouhani as saying in February that the Americans "thought that with maximum pressure they can take us to the table of negotiation in a position of weakness … this will never happen.”
The report added that, “The political climate in Iran has since decisively turned hostile to any talk of negotiating with the United States, reestablishing a taboo that existed for years before the nuclear negotiations during the presidency of Barack Obama.”
It further touched on the position adopted by Iran's new parliament on potential talks with the US.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf said on June 21 that negotiations with the US are "harmful and strictly forbidden," stressing that resistance is the only way to protect the country's rights and dignity.
The Foreign Policy report concluded that the US policy is only increasing US-Iran hostilities, urging Trump to ditch the pressure campaign against the Islamic Republic.
"Trump is mistaken if he believes “maximum pressure” is getting him closer to a deal with Iran. The policy is not leading to Iran’s capitulation or collapse, but entrenching US-Iran hostilities and keeping the United States perennially at the cusp of war in the Middle East," it said.
"An alternative approach is possible but requires Trump to ditch maximum pressure and rebuild the trust necessary for successful negotiations.
International relations and the real estate market are not similar.
Bullying and bluster do not win deals; mutual respect and “win-win” compromise do."
