US-Iran Standoff Ignites Tensions in Gulf as Europe Scrambles to Salvage Nuclear Deal - Pundits
SPUTNIK
…One of the mechanism's most pressing issues is that it is limited to "humanitarian goods," such as food and medicines, and does not cover oil, which is Iran’s main commodity that, if it had been included, could have tangibly improved the economic situation in the country, according to Dr Guy Burton, a visiting fellow at the LSE Middle East Centre and adjunct professor of international relations at the Vesalius College in Brussels.
"Increasing the basket might help, but unless oil is included, it's probably not going to get a sufficient Iranian buy-in", he stated.
The expert suggested that apart from improving INSTEX, another option would be to send a tranche of aid to Iran, although it would be closer to humanitarian assistance rather than a solution to generate production and economic activity in the country.
"At the same time, that also has public image problems: given the recent protests which were quashed by the regime, do the Europeans want to be seen as rewarding that?" Burton underlined.
At the same time, no mechanism can force entrepreneurs to run business operations in Iran, as their primary focus is on making revenue rather than completing geopolitical goals, the expert noted.
"They have to factor in the risks of doing business there, which includes the fact that many of the larger, more internationalised firms are more exposed to global markets, and therefore, American sanctions", he explained.
