The joint virtual session between the Iranian Institute for Political and International Studies(IPIS) and the International Affairs Think Tank (Chatham House) about the regional and international issues was held on Tuesday, January 12, 2021. The session was attended by Dr.Mohammad KazemSajjadpour, Deputy Minister of MOFA & President of IPIS; Mr.Majid Ghafelebashi-Research Deputy at the Center; Javad Kachoueian and Kambiz Sheikh Hassani, Senior Experts at IPIS; Hassan Ahmadian, Professor at University of Tehran; Robin Niblett, Presiden of Chatham House; Hans Kundnani, Peter Westmacott, Aniseh Bassiri Top Researchers at the think-tank.
The session was held in the form of two panels, “Examining the Top Regional UK and the New US Administration Priorities”, “The Future of the JCPOA and Management of Regional Crises”, to answer the following questions. (1) How will the US policies under Biden change against the Middle East? (2) What impacts will the Br exit have on the EU and UK’s foreign policy toward the Middle East? (3) What are the prospects of the Transatlantic relations after the BREXIT and the US presidential elections? (4) Will Biden change US policy toward China and Russia? (5) What are the effects of the latest regional and international developments? (6) How will the regional and trans-regional actors influence the Persian Gulf stability and tensions?
Here are the most important issues touched upon at the session:
Iran’s regional initiatives such as the Hormuz Peace Initiative (HOPE) stress cooperation and interaction among the regional states and can help regional peace and security as well as mutual trust.
Foreign interferences, and as a result imbalance in the region, have led to instability and tension in the Middle East and Persian Gulf regions. By withdrawing from the JCPOA and adopting the Maximum Pressure approach against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Trump administration has had a major role in wrecking crises and tensions in the region. This is while all agree that no plans for settlement of the crises in the region can yield results without Iran’s presence.
Biden’s election, as the US president will overshadow other regional and international issues, including the likely return of the US to the international agreements such as the JCPOA. The Biden administration should re-enter the JCPOA without any pre-conditions and fully carry out the US commitments.
Some steps have to be taken by all regional actors to create a new security framework to resolve some conflicts and build trust. These steps would include return of all JCPOA members for fully meeting the commitments and settling the regional crises including the Yemeni, Syrian, Palestinian and other related issues.