Gulf News
Editorial
The Trump administration has amplified its condemnation of Iran’s malevolent activities in the Arab world. US President Donald Trump himself has said that Iran is “not living up to the spirit” of the nuclear deal reached under the previous Obama administration, even if Iran is sticking to the terms of that agreement. Trump added that “I think they are doing a tremendous disservice to an agreement that was a terrible agreement. We are analysing it very carefully and we’ll have something to say about it in the not too distant future.” Then the US Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, made the Trump administration’s view clearer when she accused Iran of destabilising the region, making a specific reference to “its partner militia Hezbollah”. They are conspiring together to destabilise the Middle East, and their actions are expanding, she said.
It is important that the Trump administration has started to recognise the significant difference between Iran’s sticking to the terms of the nuclear deal and Iran’s wider ambitions to foment sectarian divisions across the region. Diplomats from the Gulf have been telling Washington ever since the deal was signed that urgent action is required on other areas of Iran’s activities. The list is long and getting longer: Iranian-backed militias in Iraq have become so entrenched in the state that it is impossible to speak of Iraq without recognising Iran’s overwhelming influence. In Syria, Iranian backing of the failing Bashar Al Assad gave the victories that got him to his current strong position. In Yemen, the Iranians have backed Al Houthi militia to help create a dangerous destabilisation in the Gulf that suits Iran but not the people of Yemen. And in Bahrain, Iran has offered active support to opposition groups, greatly exacerbating the tension in that state.
There is every reason to contain Iran’s activities, and it is welcome that Trump’s Washington recognises this. Trump’s officials have looked at Iran’s activities over particular issues but it is important that they also recognise the wider picture of the urgency of rebuilding stable nation-states across the region, and restarting the rule of law in the huge areas of the Arab world where it has collapsed into chaos and anarchy.
Without swift action, a whole generation of young Arabs will continue to grow up inured to violence and ready to embrace extremism. And that can’t be allowed to happen.
