Britain, France, and Germany have issued statements following President Trump’s withdrawal from the P5+1 nuclear deal, warning the US that they must “avoid taking action which obstructs” the rest of the signatories from continuing with the deal.
Iran plans to stay in the deal, as do the other P4+1 nations. This involves substantial sanction relief for Iran and allowing Western businesses to trade with Iran. Though the US never really complied with this, European nations have tried to allow such deals, and don’t want the US to stop them.
That seems to be exactly what the US intends, however, with Ambassador Richard Grenell warning German companies that they’d better “wind down” any business ties they have with Iran. Grenell warned US sanctions will target Iran’s economy, and this is likely to include any European companies doing business with them.
These early signs point to the Trump Administration expecting everything to go back to pre-2015 Iran deal levels, with Iran under an effective global trade ban. No one else seems interested in doing that. Since the US made this decision unilaterally, over the objection of all other signatories, many are likely to resist the US demands.
These other signatory nations will squeal a little but will fall into line when Uncle Sam threatens to cut off their foreign aid and other goodies. That’s how the U.S. rules the world. It’s the same way our politicians get votes by keeping people on the dole and dependent on them for all their goodies.
Foreign aid? Ah like when the US threatened to revoke the Marshall aid if nations did not help with the Korean war or did not eject communists from elected governments? Good old times.
By the way all post-War loans and assistance programs are paid fully back and/or strict investment conditions fulfilled within the EU. At least to my knowing.
Of course the US pays for a large slice of NATO and UN programs but they get to use it as instrument more often than not.
Not aware of aid programs to Russian, China and Iran.
A lot of money to foreign countries is buried in bills that no one ever reads. Also, we never get to see what is really in the deals and treaties we make with other nations. Look how NAFTA and GATT turned out to be boons for other countries.
You mean like when the Chinese bought up U.S. treasurys ($1.17 trillion in US debt?). You’re right, we rarely see what’s in the deals. The fake capitalism of US spending on borrowed money, expanding endless the credit space is one of those problems coming back to bite! The problem is interdependence and the only game left is bluff.
Mary, those days are numbered. Europe while usually falls in line, at this time doesn’t want to lose billions in Euros with the 4th largest oil exporting country.
In the worst case scenrio, Europe has the ability to put pressure on the dollar considering all their banks that are holding on to hundreds of billions in U.S. bonds.
I hope this is a joke. NAFTA, GATT, WTO are a help only to corporations and are terrible for workers.
Money to foreign countries is for arms (Israel, Egypt, Colombia, Ukraine, dissidents wherever democracy exists) and not to help the needy. Look at Haiti!!
The USA aids NOBODY except tyrants, arms makers and those it can bribe in vassal states. Let them rot!!
The EU nations should point out that the US chose to withdraw from the treaty. They didn’t. Is the US going to sanction the entire world? That isn’t going to help anyone.
Trump acts more and more like a spoiled brat teenager. Clinton would have been a similar player. Perhaps someday, somehow, the USA will elect an adult. Hopefully a sane adult.
The P4+1 need to boycott American goods if this gets to the point that Americans seek to restrict their rights.
Germany and other European countries should join average U.S. citizens like me in telling Richard Grennel to f%#k off.
That would be the best case scenario and a smart one. The next century belongs to Eurasia, not America. If Europe holds strong then America’s global position won’t just shrink, it will virtually evaporate. This would do more to further an “America First” policy than any chickenshit concession to peace that Trump will ever make.
A very troubled and very troubling man seeks trouble abroad to keep home trouble-makers at bay?
I hope the P4+1 countries sanction the US for violating the agreement.
Now we get to see Gladio 2.0 unfold before our very eyes.
You’ll get to see just how much backbone the Europeans have (hint, you’ll need powerful magnification to see it)
“Though the US never really complied with this, European nations have tried”
This is two important points not much discussed.
First, the US never did comply. Trump is not ending US participation, because it never started. He is just admitting what the US has done all along, without being called on it effectively.
Second, the US all along made it difficult for European nations to honor the agreement, by doing things like disrupting the banking. The US may now do more of this, but it is not starting just continuing. That means both that the Europeans were already defying the US, and the US was already blocking the deal in this way.
Hence, we can project forward from actual practice, rather than talk about how things will change.
Will European nations actually start to act as though they’re independent from the American Empire? We shall see…
The USA is the one at fault, and there needs to be some strong action to sanction the Rogue State which ignores international law, then tries to punish everyone who is correct by bullying and using the criminal banksters to ensure Iran and any partners in trade are not allowed to continue. The USA must be stopped-the increase in use of other currencies in place of the US $ is one way.
He received a master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and his bachelor’s degree in Government and Public Administration from Evangel University.[6] In June 2013, Grenell revealed that he had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma and started chemotherapy.[27] In September 2013, Grenell announced that he was in remission.[28] Grenell has a longtime partner Matt Lashey.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Grenell
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangel_University
Who is Matt Lashey?
decades later, Grenell can still be found in church most Sundays, joined by his partner of 15 years, Matt Lashey, who is himself an evangelical Christian and a graduate of Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/04/trump-nato-grenell-lgbt-rights/523830/
Grenell shows how important the USA considers diplomacy ie NOT AT ALL.
The EU poodles will cave… even a whiff of being cut off from US markets will spook them… though US firms that export to the EU will suffer just as much
the europeans will roll over like they always have that last 20-30 years or so
US: Jump, poodles, jump!!!
europe: How high???
Hard to fathom the arrogance of the US neo con ambassador to Germany. Germany should revoke the diplomatic credentials of this creature and require him to leave Germany as a persona non grata.
I don’t get it, EU has more people and more $ than the USA, at some point they have to grow a set and tell the USA to shove it.
We cannot rely on the five minus one plus one countries to save the JCPOA by standing up to US sanctions. If we want to stop Trump and Netanyahu from launching a regime changing war against Iran, we need to build a mass movement like the movement that stopped the Vietnam war. Our failure to build that mass movement is the reason we are still at war in the Middle East.
The US President can sanction any country or company doing business with Iran. The Europeans, Russians and Chinese are not going to stand up to the USA over sanctions against Iran. That would mean a global trade war.
Unfortunately, in a worldwide trade war the USA has substantial advantages over the EU, Russia and China. The USA is the most self-sufficient country in the world. China and Russia have the potential for independent economies, but their per capita GDP’s are less than 18% of the USA’s. They can’t afford an all out trade war that would impact their people more than the USA. Neither can Europe because the USA controls the banking system and the high tech companies. For example, Airbus relies on parts from the US to maintain its planes. They can’t replace that dependence in the short term. The USA has a larger GDP than the UK, Germany, France, Russia and Iran combined. Iran might have the fortitude to make the sacrifices necessary to fight a trade war with the USA, but the EU and Russia won’t. And China will not jeopardize its steady rise to international preeminence over the JCPOA.
The USA can also count on the assistance of Saudi dominated OPEC to maintain a reliable energy supply and to pressure Europe in the event that the EU countries or Russia decide to stand up to US sanctions.
I would like to be wrong about this,. But I fear Trump and Netanyahu’s plan is to push Iran to war or regime change. Only Russia has the motivation to stand up to the US. But Russia can’t fight US sanctions, especially if the EU buckles and China stays on the fence.
So, just like the 1960’s, we are on our own if we want to stop the next war. In the 1960’s KSAN started as an underground radio station of the antiwar movement and the counterculture broadcasting from San Francisco. KSAN’s news director, Scoop Nisker, used to sign off his daily newscasts saying “That’s the news for today. If you don’t like the news, go out and make some of your own.”
The antiwar movement needs to stop waiting for a savior to arise in the White House or a champion in the halls of Congress. We need to build a movement in the streets, on the campuses, in our unions, congregations and communities that will stop the wars. If we build it, the Congress members and eventually the President will come.