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Germans follow their own path in
Iran
By Hooman Peimani
Visiting German Foreign Ministry official Volker
Stanzel's talks in Tehran on Sunday with Iranian Deputy
Foreign Minister for Euro-American Affairs, Ali Ahani
indicate that while the American government is seeking
Iran's isolation, Berlin is moving in the opposite
direction.
As the director general for Asia and
Pacific affairs of his ministry, Stanzel's talks with
his Iranian counterpart focused on their bilateral
relations and on regional and international issues.
Germany's friendly ties with Iran are not a
surprising phenomenon. Along with many other European
Union members, the Germans normalized relations with
Iran in the second half of the1990s. To a varying
extent, those relations were damaged in the wake of the
1979 Iranian Islamic revolution but Germany has since
elevated itself as one of the three largest European
trading partners of Iran, along with France and Italy.
Berlin's economic relations with Tehran consist of a
wide range of fields, including chemical, pharmaceutical
and heavy industry, as well as auto manufacturing.
Therefore, Stanzel's official visit to Iran is
nothing out of the ordinary given the history of their
relations. However, what made it distinct from any other
previous German high-ranking official visiting Tehran
was its timing. Washington has increased its
anti-Iranian rhetoric since the Anglo-American
occupation of Iraq. It has also hinted at a plan to
destabilize the Iranian government through a variety of
means, ranging from supporting its opponents to a
military strike. The hostile behavior has significantly
worsened over the past three weeks as the Bush
administration has accused Iran of having an advanced
military nuclear program and of harboring al-Qaeda
members.
While it has not yet provided any proof
to substantiate its accusations, Washington has tried to
rally support among its Western allies, including
European Union countries. Their backing is necessary for
creating a degree of "legitimacy" in Western countries
for any efforts towards a regime change in Iran, which
would allow Washington to tolerate opposition from other
quarters a significant extent. This is notwithstanding
the fact that such objective does not seem achievable
because of Iran's level of social, economic and
political development - and its military strength. Those
factors make the creation of a pro-Washington regime in
Tehran through any means other than a total occupation
simply unrealistic.
In such a situation, the
American government has tried to create a consensus
among its close traditional allies in Europe and Russia,
as reflected in its efforts to improve its damaged
relations with France, Germany and Russia, with a
varying degree of enthusiasm. Yet, when it comes to
Iran, it seems that those efforts have not been very
successful, as evident in the aftermath of the last
week's Group of Eight (G8) meeting in Evian, France.
Despite the American and British claims of
Russia's sharing their concern about Iran's non-military
nuclear program and of its promise to end its nuclear
cooperation with Iran, Moscow has categorically denied
any such statements, while stressing its continued
assistance to Iran in that field. For its part, Paris
has denied any consensus among G8 countries over
Washington's authority to wage a war against Iran over
its alleged nuclear threat. Being opposed to the use of
force against that country, it has also confined the
interpretation of the G8 demand of Iran regarding its
nuclear program as nothing more than Iran's compliance
with its commitments.
As for Berlin, Chancellor
Gerhard Schroeder has clearly stated its opposition to
the American plan of a regime change in Iran through
whatever means. Following the G8 meeting, he stated:
"Iran will not be a second Iraq". This clear statement
revealed the German and the EU stance on the American
policy towards Iran, a policy opposite to the EU one.
Although the G8 leaders tried to show a degree of
solidarity, the mentioned remarks of its main European
states showed the persistence of differences between the
US with Russia, France and Germany, although political
and economic necessities have inclined all of them to
change their previous harsh tones.
With it
having the largest European economy and the third
largest global one, Germany's opposition to the current
American policy towards Iran is of special importance.
On the one hand, such a stance, which enjoys the backing
of the entire EU membership, including Europe's second
largest economy and the world's fourth (France), help
maintain the current EU policy of engagement and
negotiation with Iran, which both sides want to
continue. Their growing bilateral relations, which have
made the EU the largest trading partner of Iran,
demonstrate this mutual interest. It has also been
evident in the EU-Iran negotiations for concluding a
Trade and Cooperation Agreement, whose fourth round was
conducted last week in Tehran. On the other, the German
opposition creates a barrier, though not a strong
preventive measure, to the repetition of an American
regime-change scenario.
Against this background,
Stanzel's visit to Tehran was important for its message.
Besides promoting their bilateral relations, his visit
seemed to signify his government's clear opposition to
any American effort to destabilize Iran by demonstrating
Berlin's assessment of Iran as a friendly nation. That
became apparent in his remarks. As reported by IRNA,
Stanzel stated during his talks with Ahani that Iran and
Germany had enjoyed "excellent relations", while adding
a nod to Iran's "special status" in German public
opinion. He also stated that Iran had proved its
constructive role in the region, including in the
"international campaign against terrorism in
Afghanistan". Moreover, he described Iran as a land of
peace and security in the region and called for more
Iranian contribution to regional peace efforts. Among
others, Stanzel's statements contradicted the American
accusations of Iran's harboring al-Qaeda members and of
portraying it as a source of regional instability.
Like the Russians, who have continued their
nuclear relations with Iran despite the American
allegations about Iran, the Germans now seek to
consolidate their ties with that country in pursuit of
their national interests in the oil-rich Persian Gulf
region. Such interests, like those of the majority of
the EU membership, now seem to be contrary to the
American ones. Although various political, economic and
security considerations require a degree of cooperation
between Berlin and Washington, evidence suggests that
their differing long-term objectives will contribute to
a widening gap between the two sides over a variety of
issues, including Iran's emergence as a regional power.
Dr Hooman Peimani works as an
independent consultant with international organizations
in Geneva and does research in international
relations.
(Copyright 2003 Asia Times Online
Co, Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for
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