Iran’s Role in a Restless Middle-East: Structuring a New European Stance
on June 5th 2018 from 14:00-16:00
at the European Parliament, Room 3E-2.
Iran has been locked in a fierce battle for regional dominance since the establishment of the Islamic Republic, and its activities have played an influential role in the dynamic and changing course of several conflicts. For decades, Iran has pursued a complex myriad of competing foreign security, political, and economic priorities, which are further complicated by its difficult domestic political structure. In theory, Iranian politics allow for a certain degree of democratic values. However the hardline bodies that dominate the security and judiciary structures continue to crackdown on citizens and human rights activists, with little regard for international and domestic legal standards.
In the aftermath of US intervention in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and following the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal, a new era of foreign and diplomatic relations between Iran and the EU and its partners were introduced. Despite being envisioned to reform Iran’s internal state of affairs and build a more constructive relationship with the West or its neighbors in the Middle East, evidence suggests that the current state of affairs is encouraging the opposite effect. By mitigating nuclear ambitions upon unstable trust, it gave Iran increased leverage to boost its engagement in the wider region through its proxies, such as Hezbollah, as well as the Syrian regime and Shi’a militias in both Yemen and Iraq.
This event seeks to yield a constructive conversation amongst experts, academics and policymakers on Iran’s complex impact on the Middle-East’s regional stability. It will also allow an open discussion on how the EU can better leverage its political influence to mitigate the risk of conflict, human rights abuses, escalated proxy wars and a nuclear Iranian state. Following a momentous decision by U.S. President Trump on the Nuclear Deal, this event will provide a forum to explore the ramifications of this latest development.