US-Iran Relations and Israel’s Escalation in Lebanon
Abstract
Dr Masuma Hasan
A great deal has changed in the political landscape of the Middle East since we decided to hold this seminar. President Donald Trump and the Iranian president have signed a fourteen-point Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, commonly referred to as the Islamabad MoU, to end hostilities, and a timeline of 60 days has been established to work towards a durable peace.
The United States and Israel launched a war against Iran on 28 February this year, assassinating the 86-year-old Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with many senior military officials.
With respect to the MoU, it stipulates an immediate end to the war on every front, including in Lebanon. It ensures the free flow of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the United States blockade on Iranian ports, and the waiver of sanctions imposed on Iran. The Memorandum of Understanding also provides for the unfreezing of Iranian assets and includes a plan allocating 300 billion United States dollars for Iran's rehabilitation. Where these funds will come from, we do not know.
As we all know, the United States has consistently maintained that the price of peace in the Middle East is that Iran should never possess a nuclear weapon. On the other hand, Iran has never stated that it intends to acquire a nuclear weapon. However, it remains a fragile peace, particularly because President Donald Trump has warned that if Iran does not behave itself, whatever that may mean, he would 'bomb the hell out of it'. He has also indicated that, should Iran fail to honor its commitments, military action could be resumed.
