For political and economic reasons Europe will do its best to keep the Iran nuclear deal in place, believes Han Liqun, a current affairs commentator writing for The Beijing News.
The US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal will directly escalate tensions in the Middle East and possibly provoke major military conflicts, Han says.
Growing acts of terrorism and refugee numbers are among the top concerns of Europeans – and both find causes in Middle East instability. As the Syria crisis begins to ease, Europeans do not want the region to become chaotic once again, the scholar argues.
Europe also has considerable economic interests in the Middle East, and in 2017 the European Union was Iran’s second-largest trading partner. Like the Paris Agreement, the Iran nuclear deal is symbolic of Europe’s political influence in the world, Han says. Due to its decreased economic power, Europe has been marginalized in an increasing number of global areas.
With its global leadership weakened by US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, Europe will not allow the Iran nuclear deal to fail too.
Old Version
