The first two weeks of May were marked by a serious escalation of the American-Iranian confrontation, which the United States expressed in expanding sanctions and sending troops to the Middle East, and from Iran in partly suspending the fulfillment of its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan (SAPI). At the same time politicians, diplomats and the military of the highest level do not stint on harsh statements from both sides.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, on the eve of his visit to Russia, spoke about the goals that Washington is pursuing with its actions against Tehran.
“We will not allow blunders. Our goal is not war, but a change in the behavior of the Iranian leadership. We hope that the Iranian people will finally get what they want and deserve, ”said Pompeo.
At the same time, during a conversation with CNBC, the head of the Department of State called the transfer of additional forces to the Middle East "necessary measures" to strengthen the security of the United States in the region. According to him, Washington needs a deterrent force in case Tehran decides to damage American interests in Afghanistan and the Middle East. Pompeo added that these forces are needed in order to properly respond, "if something happens."
Recall that on May 5, National Security Advisor to Donald Trump, John Bolton, reported on sending the US Navy strike team led by the USS aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and the B-52 tactical bomber group to the operational area of the Central Command. A few days later, the Pentagon approved an additional transfer to the Middle East of the amphibious transport dock-type "San Antonio" USS Arlington and several Patriot air defense missile systems.
These actions were accompanied by statements that Iran was allegedly engaged in an escalation of tensions, while the United States was only protecting its interests.
Moreover, the US authorities constantly declare their readiness to start negotiations on a new “comprehensive agreement” with Iran in the nuclear sphere, which Washington sees as a replacement for the FIDD (from which the States unilaterally left a year ago). And this is despite the fact that both in the West and in the East they indicate to Washington that it was his actions that led to the current increase in tensions.
- US Air Force Strategic Bomber B-52
- Reuters
- © Kim Hong-Ji
According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the strengthening of the American military presence in a particular region as a hint of willingness to use force has become the behavior of the American authorities. And he drew the attention of Mike Pompeo to the fact that to solve all questions it is worth using tools of diplomacy, not threats.
“But for this you need to have a taste for diplomacy, which is not present at all now. We will continue to seek a dialogue aimed at finding compromises, a balance of interests. This is the only way. Imposing one’s own approaches on everyone and everything is a counterproductive and dead-end position, ”Lavrov emphasized.
In turn, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that Tehran does not want a war with anyone, but it will "defend itself with all its might" if the United States shows aggression against Iran.
Brigadier General Hossein Salami, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said the same thing on Sunday, May 12. At the same time, he doubted that the United States would decide to use its aircraft carriers against Tehran, since the Iranian defensive capabilities are “adequate and sufficient,” and the American ships are vulnerable.
“If America takes a step against us, then we will strike a blow to the head,” Salami said.
At the same time, the commander of the Air Force and the Space Forces of the IRGC, Brigadier General Amir-Ali Hadjizade, said that the US aircraft carrier is now a target, not a threat.
“The American aircraft carrier, on which there are at least 40-50 aircraft and 6,000 servicemen, was a threat to us before, and now it has become a target,” RIA Novosti quotes Hadjizade, referring to the ISNA agency.
- The Ticonderoga-class missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf, part of the carrier group, passes the Suez Canal
- © USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72)
“Washington believes that the whole world is a zone of US interests”
Speaking about the latest escalation of the American-Iranian conflict, Director of the Institute of Contemporary State Development Dmitry Solonnikov, in an interview with RT, stated that in Washington they consider the whole world a zone of US interests. However, the expert noted that the States have always considered the Middle East a priority of their foreign policy.
“There are several points. On the one hand - the confrontation between Iran and Israel, which is a strategic ally of the United States under the current administration of the White House. The second direction is support for Saudi Arabia, another American ally in the region, and the problem of the relationship between Sunnis and Shiites. States want to play a major role in resolving this conflict, ”Solonnikov said.
According to him, the United States wants to change Iran’s foreign policy based on its political interests and priorities in the region, but if this cannot be achieved with the current leadership, then Washington is considering the option of changing the ruling regime.
“The United States has long been declaring this task and trying to implement it with different methods. They will use all the cards that Americans have in their hands in this game, and the announcement of this concept by Pompeo didn’t change much, ”Solonnikov added.
In turn, the head of the Center for Military-Political Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladimir Batyuk, said that in relation to Iran, Washington is using the foreign policy tactics traditional for the current American administration, which Donald Trump worked while still an entrepreneur.
“At first, a certain country, it doesn’t matter, Russia is Iran, China or Venezuela, they frankly press, threaten it, introduce new sanctions and threaten with tougher additional ones, and then make some statements about the possibility of dialogue, compromise and so on. .. I don’t know how in the business sphere, but in the sphere of international relations there are quite clear limits to which a country is ready to retreat in search of this very compromise, ”the expert noted.
The interlocutor of RT added that the leadership of Iran in 2015 had to go to the conclusion of the DFTS after years of negotiations and the exhaustion of political resources in search of a compromise on the nuclear program. As a result, the signed document was very ambiguously met in Iranian society, especially in conservative circles.
“In Iran, many people considered that this is completely unacceptable concessions and capitulation, that the country's leadership, pro-Western liberals, surrendered the country's national interests in the name of some empty promises,” Batiuk explained.
“The fact that the United States has withdrawn from this transaction and introduced new sanctions is a severe blow to moderate circles in the Islamic Republic of Iran, ready for some kind of compromise and dialogue with Western partners. And if Washington is expecting some new concessions and surrender of positions on the part of Tehran, then this is a very erroneous view of the situation that has developed in the Iranian-American relations, ”the expert concluded.