European powers must push for Iran-Israel ceasefire

https://arab.news/2b84h
An Israeli war against Iran, which so many have feared for decades, today threatens to engulf the world in a dangerous conflict with disastrous human, political, economic and environmental consequences. Israel has unilaterally jeopardized global security with a reckless gamble.
Many debate the position of the Trump administration. How much did it know and when? Was President Donald Trump opposed to the action but unable to stop belligerent Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu or did he quietly acquiesce? Is Netanyahu out of control? The White House has been supportive but not enthusiastic. The risk of Netanyahu sucking Trump into his war is genuine, not least if Israeli attacks on Iranian oil and gas infrastructure triggers Iran to block the Strait of Hormuz or attack oil and gas sites in neighboring states.
What are the options for major European powers? The Trump administration had excluded them from the Oman talks on a new Iran nuclear deal and kept them at arm's length, even though they had been crucial in securing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action agreement in 2015. But Europe will not be immune to the consequences of this war.
The British, French and German leaders have resorted to calling for de-escalation and restraint. This is limp. Israel could reduce the number of daily strikes and that might qualify, but it would resolve nothing. Iran might send a missile salvo half the size of its usual barrage. Calling for a ceasefire is a minimum. The reality is that none of these leaders wish to be publicly seen calling for Israel to stop, as that might invoke lazy accusations of appeasement.
But this position hardly looks credible when UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announces that Britain is building up its forces in the region. Ministers state that the UK may help defend Israel from Iranian strikes. This is the very path of escalation that will give Israel a comfort blanket from which to continue its chosen path of aggression against Iran.
Working together and with regional and other actors, they must root their positions in international legitimacy
Chris Doyle
European powers need this like a hole in the head. The impact on the price of oil and gas will harm their economies just as many are facing dire economic conditions and are being forced into spending cuts. Defense spending increases were designed to cope with the threat from Russia, not wars in the Middle East.
This is why Britain, France and Germany have offered Iran immediate talks on the nuclear issue. But this train has well and truly left the station. Iran is unlikely to be willing to negotiate while under bombardment. The most likely answer will be: 'make Israel stop and then let's see.' Moreover, if Israel and the US are not on board, why would Iran engage?
But as well as engaging in whatever diplomacy is available, European powers should ensure a posture of no direct involvement in this war. Working together and with regional and other actors, they must root their positions in international legitimacy. Both Israel and Iran should be made to understand that their future relations with Europe depend on ending this conflict. Wherever possible, European actors should encourage the Trump administration to cooperate in bringing this to a close. European actors can also work hard to prevent this conflict from spreading. They will have to protect their assets in the region, but also do everything to stop the situation from deteriorating.
Netanyahu has engaged in a war of choice against Iran. European leaders should make this clear and condemn it as such. Israel was not acting in self-defense and to suggest so risks contempt, not respect. They can also express understanding as to why Israel had fears about the Iranian enrichment program, but at the same time make it clear that military action was not warranted. The US-Iran talks should have been allowed a chance to succeed, not be bombed into oblivion. To the extent that it was a preemptive strike, it was against any possibility of a nuclear deal between the US and Iran.
Only by returning to a moral high ground and a rules-based approach can European actors regain any respect
Chris Doyle
European powers should also be clear to Iran that, while the Israeli attacks were an aggression, Iran's unwillingness to abandon its nuclear program and its threats against Israel were also unacceptable. Arming nonstate actors across the Middle East to disrupt and undermine regional security was wrong and counterproductive.
Palestine should also not drop off the agenda. International actors have so far failed to halt the genocide in Gaza and the settlement frenzy in the West Bank. The message to Israeli leaders should be crystal clear: committing these war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against Palestinians is unacceptable, cannot continue and will have consequences.
Only by returning to a moral high ground and a rules-based approach can European actors regain the respect they have occasionally benefited from internationally. Judicial bodies should be encouraged to pay close attention as to how both Israel and Iran conduct this war and what they target.
This is a casino war, a reckless gamble in which the stakes are far too high. European leaders cannot be passive observers. They must be at the forefront of a relentless diplomatic onslaught that matches or even surpasses Netanyahu's fondness for war and Iran's desire for retaliation.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Arab News

an hour ago

• Arab News

IAEA says centrifuge workshop at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site hit

VIENNA: The UN nuclear agency confirmed on Saturday that a centrifuge manufacturing workshop at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site had been hit, in the latest strike amid Israel's bombing campaign. 'A centrifuge manufacturing workshop has been hit in Esfahan, the third such facility that has been targeted in Israel's attacks on Iran's nuclear-related sites over the past week,' the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement quoting its chief Rafael Grossi. 'We know this facility well. There was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences,' Grossi was quoted as saying.

Al Arabiya

an hour ago

• Al Arabiya

Erdogan tells Iran's top diplomat resuming talks only way to solve nuclear dispute

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday told Iran's foreign minister that resuming Iranian-US talks on Tehran's nuclear program was the only way to achieve a solution to their dispute and the conflict with Israel, the Turkish presidency said. Erdogan met Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on the sidelines of an Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Istanbul. In a statement, his office noted that Erdogan said Israel had to be stopped immediately. Erdogan said Turkey was ready to play a facilitator role to help resume the nuclear talks, adding 'steps should be taken as soon as possible to open up diplomacy via technical and leaders-level talks between Iran and the US,' his office added.

Asharq Al-Awsat

2 hours ago

• Asharq Al-Awsat

Pakistan to Nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

Pakistan said on Saturday it would recommend US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, an accolade that he has said he craves, for his work in helping to resolve the recent conflict between India and Pakistan. Some analysts in Pakistan said the move might persuade Trump to think again about potentially joining Israel in striking Iran's nuclear facilities. Pakistan has condemned Israel's action as a violation of international law and a threat to regional stability. In May, a surprise announcement by Trump of a ceasefire brought an abrupt end to a four-day conflict between nuclear-armed foes India and Pakistan. Trump has since repeatedly said that he averted a nuclear war, saved millions of lives, and grumbled that he got no credit for it. Pakistan agrees that US diplomatic intervention ended the fighting, but India says it was a bilateral agreement between the two militaries. "President Trump demonstrated great strategic foresight and stellar statesmanship through robust diplomatic engagement with both Islamabad and New Delhi, which de-escalated a rapidly deteriorating situation," Pakistan said. "This intervention stands as a testament to his role as a genuine peacemaker." Governments can nominate people for the Nobel Peace Prize. There was no immediate response from Washington. A spokesperson for the Indian government did not respond to a request for comment. Trump has repeatedly said that he's willing to mediate between India and Pakistan over the disputed Kashmir region, their main source of enmity. Islamabad, which has long called for international attention to Kashmir, is delighted. But his stance has upended US policy in South Asia, which had favored India as a counterweight to China, and put in question previously close relations between Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a social media post on Friday, Trump gave a long list of conflicts he said he had resolved, including India and Pakistan and the Abraham accords in his first term between Israel and some Arab countries. He added: "I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do." Pakistan's move to nominate Trump came in the same week its army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, met the US leader for lunch. It was the first time that a Pakistani military leader had been invited to the White House when a civilian government was in place in Islamabad. Trump's planned meeting with Modi at the G7 summit in Canada last week did not take place after the US president left early, but the two later spoke by phone, in which Modi said "India does not and will never accept mediation" in its dispute with Pakistan, according to the Indian government. Mushahid Hussain, a former chair of the Senate Defense Committee in Pakistan's parliament, suggested nominating Trump for the peace prize was justified. "Trump is good for Pakistan," he said. "If this panders to Trump's ego, so be it. All the European leaders have been sucking up to him big time."