Nuclear security

Safeguarding Iran Nuclear Deal: A Blueprint for Europe

As the future of the Iran nuclear deal looks increasingly uncertain, European diplomats are hard pressed to find solutions that balance US President Donald Trump’s demands to “fix” the accord with Iranian expectations.

In the face of renewed US sanctions, the question now is how far can and should Europe go to preserve the agreement?

The latest European Leadership Network (British think tank) policy brief by Policy Fellow Axel Hellman argues that European policymakers should lay the technical and political groundwork to challenge the snapback of US sanctions.

 Validation Measures

The policy brief suggests that to influence US decision-making and demonstrate Europe’s commitment to the deal, European leaders should take the following measures:

1) Send firm diplomatic signals. European leaders should send credible signals that the EU is willing to take action if confronted with US sanctions. Useful tools for signaling include reviving EU “blocking regulations” (which prohibit EU persons from complying with US secondary sanctions or acknowledging the jurisdiction of non-EU courts or authorities with respect to those sanctions). Despite the drawbacks, the preparation of blocking regulations would convey to Washington that Europeans are willing to fight for the deal, and to Tehran that Europe remains committed to the agreement...