Despite there being no credible evidence that the nation of Iran has developed any nuclear weapons previously in the past or currently, many countries and multinational organizations have imposed sanctions on Iran (Figg, 2012). The reason for this is that most nations around the world can still not come to a consensus regarding the issue of development of nuclear arms. In some cases countries want to strengthen their nuclear defenses while others seek to reduce or put an end to nuclear arms development completely.
Powerful nations, led by the United States have moved to impose economic sanctions on the Iranian Regime in order to stem the flow of money and material which could possibly aid the country in increasing its nuclear weapons programs. The United States and her allies, the European Union, the United Nations and the United Nations Security Council have since imposed up to four rounds of strict sanctions. This was after Iran, being a member of the UN, disregarded the rules of the International Atomic Energy Agency by choosing not to comply (Davis, 2008). This is the agency responsible for ensuring peace and safety in nuclear activities around the globe. Since Iran has been unable to convince the world that its nuclear program is peaceful in nature, it has created a potentially hazardous situation which has necessitated the strict sanctions on Iran?s international financial activities, military and trade.
The sanctions which have been imposed on Iran by the UN and other powers have had a clear effect on the Iranian economy. However, the regime has clearly not been moved by the sanctions since it has since continuously diverted funds from the provision of basic services such as healthcare to the development of nuclear and military programs which have absolutely zero benefit to the people of Iran. Ironically, the regime has used the sanctions as a scapegoat, blaming the sanctions for the country?s economic problems.
The Iranian regime has largely remained unmoved by the harshest sanctions ever imposed on a nation and has not given any indication that it is about to succumb to the pressure. Head of the US Central Command, General James Mattis stated that the Iranian regime had accelerated its nuclear program in spite of the increased diplomatic and economic pressure. The regime, which has been suffering sanctions since the 1979, has proved to be adept when it comes to adjusting to whatever new sanctions that are imposed. Oil sanctions have greatly reduced sanctions but still Iran has managed to sell enough oil to continue providing basic services as well as maintain the lavish lifestyles led by the ruling class and the business elite.
The regime has been forced to sell Iran?s oil through adapting to unconventional methods of sourcing buyers. For instance, it has been revealed that Iran once obtained crucial aid in evading sanctions from a Greek shipping magnate who perpetrated the sale of Iranian crude oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars to unsuspecting customers. The US identified the magnate, Dimitris Cambis who is said to have been Iran?s oil broker, transporting millions of barrels of oil from Iran to buyers all over the world. The Iranian regime has also devised other methods to avoid sanctions such as using currency reserves of Euros in certain banks and formulating complex financial deals which cannot be detected by the US banking system.
The economic situation in Iran has been aggravated by the sanctions, particularly the strength of the currency which seems to have had its final straw upon the imposition of the latest round of sanctions. The Iranian currency has always been inflated, mainly due to the way the regime has been spending money in previous year (Haass, 1998). Since the sanctions were imposed, the feeling among citizens that the regime does not have much reserve has emerged. The regime has always been very secretive its reserve and this feeling has been fueled by the fact that it has introduced two types of exchange rates. One which is more suitable for importing goods and the other less official one for goods which are less basic with significant reduction in the ability to obtain dollars for things such as student loans.
Ironically, the regime has also managed to turn some of the sanctions to its own benefit. One case is where countries which imported Iranian oil were free to continue doing so, as long as they paid in local goods which would be exported to Iran. By doing so, the sanction would deprive Iran of the hard currency which it desperately needs. In addition to this, the countries which are dependent on Iran for oil continue receiving oil and benefit economically while forcing Iran to buy their products. The Iranian regime instead used the imported products to counteract the high inflation rates by conserving its much needed cash which it uses to subsidize consumer prices and pay salaries, thereby keeping any growing unrest at bay.
The sanction have also affected the culture and arts in Iran, with artistic individuals such as poets, writers and translators expressing their concern over the direct and indirect effects the sanctions may have on the country. They all have a unanimous stand concerning the impact of the sanctions. For instance, the price of paper has since multiplied fivefold since the imposition of the first round of sanctions, effectively making publishing to be no longer viable. Another example of visible effects of the sanctions on the arts is the decline of the National Symphony Orchestra, which has not been practicing regularly and whose musicians have suffered for two months without payment. In addition to this, they have not performed the works of any great composers in concert for a period of about two years now.
The regime has been unable to support the scientific development in the county as a result of the sanctions. Due to the impact of the devalued currency and the financial sanctions, it has increasingly become difficult to gain access to academic and scientific papers which are necessary to keep up to date with the most recent developments in the scientific field being made in the world. Even bright graduates have very slim prospects of getting jobs in Iran, resulting in massive ?brain drain?. Iranian scientists have also been denied access to science conferences, a good example being when 35 scientists were denied visas by the Egyptian government. The scientists had been invited to a gathering of Middle Eastern scientists but even upon submitting their visa applications six weeks prior, they did not receive any response from the Egyptian embassy in Tehran. This kind of treatment has inflicted massive blows on the Iranian regime by setting back scientific development many years back.
Since the imposition of sanctions, the Iranian currency has declined by more than 80%, causing the prices of imported medicine, machines and various kinds of foodstuffs to rise beyond the reach of the ordinary citizen. The regime has been unable to stop this, with the most critical effect being on the availability of drugs as well as the health of the population. 97% of the drugs needed in Iran are produced locally and also subsidized quite significantly. The declined currency makes the importation of the raw materials needed to make the drugs very expensive. For instance, the drugs used to treat many forms of cancer cannot be imported despite the number of people with cancer increasing. Health experts have even gone as far as to predict a ?Cancer tsunami? in Iran by 2015.
The sanctions which have been imposed on Iran due its nuclear program are a series of actions against Iran?s regime. However the regime does not appear to be cracking to pressure any time soon even as more rounds of sanctions are imposed on it despite heavy damage to the economy which is lethal in all respects. It is highly unlikely that the regime will ever succumb to the pressure of sanctions as it is aware that the severity of the sanctions will not threaten the well being of innocent citizens.
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(Keep in mind that if your original threat issue has you focusing on a country OTHER than the United States, then this is the section that would finally have the US come into play in great depth and detail, among others)?.
What other countries/regions of the world are concerned with this same threat issue?
Which countries/regions of the world do not place a high priority on this threat issue?
What are some of the current policies being employed by these other states/regions in regards to the threat?
What have been some of the successes and failures of the various alternative policies around the globe?
What areas of joint communication/operation/cooperation exist or should exist across countries dealing with this threat issue?
Is there one state in particular that seems to be doing a better job than the United States as concerns this threat issue?
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This is part III in the development of your analytical skills. Having chosen a threat and completed its assessment and then critiqued current policy towards said threat, you will now engage in part III ? analytically comparing alternative approaches, theories, ideas, and policies around the world on your chosen threat..
Below are part 1 & 2, please use these as the guide to asking the question for part 3….
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Part1
Since the Iranian Revolution in 1979, Iran has been a target of sanctions from the US and its allies. These sanctions have since increased in terms of their scope and their severity, but generally having a negative impact on Iran. The sanctions have prevented the Iran from economic progress despite its massive oil reserves and led to the loss of life. This paper will discuss in detail the impact of these sanctions on the Iranian regime as well as its response.
Despite there being no credible evidence that the nation of Iran has developed any nuclear weapons previously in the past or currently, many countries and multinational organizations have imposed sanctions on Iran (Figg, 2012). The reason for this is that most nations around the world can still not come to a consensus regarding the issue of development of nuclear arms. In some cases countries want to strengthen their nuclear defenses while others seek to reduce or put an end to nuclear arms development completely.
Powerful nations, led by the United States have moved to impose economic sanctions on the Iranian Regime in order to stem the flow of money and material which could possibly aid the country in increasing its nuclear weapons programs. The United States and her allies, the European Union, the United Nations and the United Nations Security Council have since imposed up to four rounds of strict sanctions. This was after Iran, being a member of the UN, disregarded the rules of the International Atomic Energy Agency by choosing not to comply (Davis, 2008). This is the agency responsible for ensuring peace and safety in nuclear activities around the globe. Since Iran has been unable to convince the world that its nuclear program is peaceful in nature, it has created a potentially hazardous situation which has necessitated the strict sanctions on Iran?s international financial activities, military and trade.
The sanctions which have been imposed on Iran by the UN and other powers have had a clear effect on the Iranian economy. However, the regime has clearly not been moved by the sanctions since it has since continuously diverted funds from the provision of basic services such as healthcare to the development of nuclear and military programs which have absolutely zero benefit to the people of Iran. Ironically, the regime has used the sanctions as a scapegoat, blaming the sanctions for the country?s economic problems.
The Iranian regime has largely remained unmoved by the harshest sanctions ever imposed on a nation and has not given any indication that it is about to succumb to the pressure. Head of the US Central Command, General James Mattis stated that the Iranian regime had accelerated its nuclear program in spite of the increased diplomatic and economic pressure. The regime, which has been suffering sanctions since the 1979, has proved to be adept when it comes to adjusting to whatever new sanctions that are imposed. Oil sanctions have greatly reduced sanctions but still Iran has managed to sell enough oil to continue providing basic services as well as maintain the lavish lifestyles led by the ruling class and the business elite.
The regime has been forced to sell Iran?s oil through adapting to unconventional methods of sourcing buyers. For instance, it has been revealed that Iran once obtained crucial aid in evading sanctions from a Greek shipping magnate who perpetrated the sale of Iranian crude oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars to unsuspecting customers. The US identified the magnate, Dimitris Cambis who is said to have been Iran?s oil broker, transporting millions of barrels of oil from Iran to buyers all over the world. The Iranian regime has also devised other methods to avoid sanctions such as using currency reserves of Euros in certain banks and formulating complex financial deals which cannot be detected by the US banking system.
The economic situation in Iran has been aggravated by the sanctions, particularly the strength of the currency which seems to have had its final straw upon the imposition of the latest round of sanctions. The Iranian currency has always been inflated, mainly due to the way the regime has been spending money in previous year (Haass, 1998). Since the sanctions were imposed, the feeling among citizens that the regime does not have much reserve has emerged. The regime has always been very secretive its reserve and this feeling has been fueled by the fact that it has introduced two types of exchange rates. One which is more suitable for importing goods and the other less official one for goods which are less basic with significant reduction in the ability to obtain dollars for things such as student loans.
Ironically, the regime has also managed to turn some of the sanctions to its own benefit. One case is where countries which imported Iranian oil were free to continue doing so, as long as they paid in local goods which would be exported to Iran. By doing so, the sanction would deprive Iran of the hard currency which it desperately needs. In addition to this, the countries which are dependent on Iran for oil continue receiving oil and benefit economically while forcing Iran to buy their products. The Iranian regime instead used the imported products to counteract the high inflation rates by conserving its much needed cash which it uses to subsidize consumer prices and pay salaries, thereby keeping any growing unrest at bay.
The sanction have also affected the culture and arts in Iran, with artistic individuals such as poets, writers and translators expressing their concern over the direct and indirect effects the sanctions may have on the country. They all have a unanimous stand concerning the impact of the sanctions. For instance, the price of paper has since multiplied fivefold since the imposition of the first round of sanctions, effectively making publishing to be no longer viable. Another example of visible effects of the sanctions on the arts is the decline of the National Symphony Orchestra, which has not been practicing regularly and whose musicians have suffered for two months without payment. In addition to this, they have not performed the works of any great composers in concert for a period of about two years now.
The regime has been unable to support the scientific development in the county as a result of the sanctions. Due to the impact of the devalued currency and the financial sanctions, it has increasingly become difficult to gain access to academic and scientific papers which are necessary to keep up to date with the most recent developments in the scientific field being made in the world. Even bright graduates have very slim prospects of getting jobs in Iran, resulting in massive ?brain drain?. Iranian scientists have also been denied access to science conferences, a good example being when 35 scientists were denied visas by the Egyptian government. The scientists had been invited to a gathering of Middle Eastern scientists but even upon submitting their visa applications six weeks prior, they did not receive any response from the Egyptian embassy in Tehran. This kind of treatment has inflicted massive blows on the Iranian regime by setting back scientific development many years back.
Since the imposition of sanctions, the Iranian currency has declined by more than 80%, causing the prices of imported medicine, machines and various kinds of foodstuffs to rise beyond the reach of the ordinary citizen. The regime has been unable to stop this, with the most critical effect being on the availability of drugs as well as the health of the population. 97% of the drugs needed in Iran are produced locally and also subsidized quite significantly. The declined currency makes the importation of the raw materials needed to make the drugs very expensive. For instance, the drugs used to treat many forms of cancer cannot be imported despite the number of people with cancer increasing. Health experts have even gone as far as to predict a ?Cancer tsunami? in Iran by 2015.
The sanctions which have been imposed on Iran due its nuclear program are a series of actions against Iran?s regime. However the regime does not appear to be cracking to pressure any time soon even as more rounds of sanctions are imposed on it despite heavy damage to the economy which is lethal in all respects. It is highly unlikely that the regime will ever succumb to the pressure of sanctions as it is aware that the severity of the sanctions will not threaten the well being of innocent citizens.
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Part2
Introduction
Politics in the United States have been marked and greatly impacted by the foreign policy. In fact, one of the regions in the world that have been influential in the US foreign policy is the Middle East. The Middle East has remained a strategically important region for the United States and other nations in the West. Iran is one of the countries in the Middle East that have been targeted by the United States and the west in general (O’Sullivan, 2010). This paper focuses on the sanctions that have been out on Iran by the United States and some of its allies such as the European Union.
Since the period following the World War II, there have existed strains in the relationships between Iran and the United States. The relationship between these two countries worsened as a result of the 1979 Revolution, while Iran was still under the rule of Mohamed Reza Shah. The news about the revolution came as a surprise to the United States. The reason why the news came as a surprise to many Americans was because up until January 1979, the U.S. had believed that the Muslim subjects in Islamic nations did not have the propensity to either question or disparage their leaders? strategies or leadership policies. For over three decades, since the Iranian Revolution, the United States has targeted the country with economic sanctions that have changed with time to increase in severity and scope. This has also been done by other nations and multinational organizations (Figg, et al 2012).
The current sanctions on Iran by the United States and its allies were imposed due to the argument that Iran has nuclear weapons. The United States and other nations in the west have always believed that Iran is in the process of developing nuclear weapons, although there is no convincing evidence to this accusation. However, most of the countries, especially in the west have come to an agreement that Iran is a threat due to the development of weapons of mass destruction. The US seems to have strong commitment to the implementation of the global declarations concerning the Arab nations. This is the kind of approach has also been evident in the manner in which the United States government has dealt with the global problem of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Middle East. The United States foreign policy has been looking into the possibility of clearing such weapons from the region. The United States is wary of the nuclear programmes that continue to expand in Iran. Despite the fact that the Iranian administration remains adamant that the programme is exclusively for the manufacture of nuclear energy, it is believed by many that Iran is indeed producing weapons of mass destruction (Haass, 1998).
There has been fear in the United States that it is possible for Iran to provide the weapons of mass destruction to terrorist groups. As a reason, the United States and many other countries in the west have sought to put efforts that would hinder the country from continuing to develop the weapons. From an economic perspective, no other ways would be more effective than putting sanctions on the country such that no finances or materials would come into the country to support the efforts to develop the weapons. The United States allies that have joined in the imposition of the sanctions against Iran include the United Nations, the European Union and the United Nations Security Council. Since the imposition of the sanctions started, there have been about four rounds. The increase in the severity and scope of the sanctions has been as a result of the refusal by the country to comply with the requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency, regardless being a member of the United Nations. The country also failed to convince the world that it was developing the nuclear weapons for peaceful purposes as is the case with many other countries (Esfandiary & Fitzpatrick, 2011).
The sanctions have had major effects on the populations in the country, although these effects are not always quantifiable and can also be conflicting. However, the effects due to the economic damages and injury inflicted on the population are all aspects are unequivocal and lethal. The sanctions are argued to have major negative effects on the people of Iran. Economic progress has not been possible in the country due to the sanctions. Regardless of the country having vast oil deposits, it has not been able to reap the benefits of this resource due to these sanctions. Regardless the fact that in this age there is free trade in the international market, Iran has not been able to sell its oil this way because of the sanctions, but has been forced to seek other unconventional methods of selling it. The country has tried various methods of escaping sanctions like the use of currency reserves of Euros in some banks and developing complex economic deals that cannot be detected by the United States or global financial systems (MacFarquhar, 2010).
It has been hard for the Iranian currency to remain stable amidst the sanctions. Thus, the currency has been declining leading to prices of basic items such as drugs, macadditionalhines and different kinds of foodstuffs to skyrocket beyond the reach of the common person in the country. It has been hard for the government to control this decline, the major effect of this being the inability to access such basic products as medicine and food. Imports are very expensive making it hard to access even the raw materials to produce the drugs for use by the Iranian population. One of the groups of patients that have been affected are those suffering from cancer, a population that is increasing. As a matter of fact, some experts have predicted a ?Cancer tsunami? in the county by the year 2015 (MacFarquhar, 2010).
The economic situation in the country has become worse because of the sanctions. Its currency has continued to become weak especially due to the imposing of the fourth round of sanctions. The situation has always been bad in the country due to the leadership bad spending (Haass, 1998). The government of Iran has not always been open on its spending and the perceptions of the public regarding the diminishing reserves as been made worse by the introduction of two kinds of exchange rates in the country. One of these systems is suited for the importation of goods, while the second one is less official for importation of items that are less basic.
There have also been effects on the arts and culture of Iran due to the sanctions. Writers, artists and translators have themselves expressed concerns over the effects of the sanctions on their work. This is because of the increase in the materials they use to produce their work such as paper, whose price has been increasing since the beginning of the sanctions. When the basic products are hard to come by, it is expected that other products that are considered not very basic to suffer (Katzman, 2009).
The country has stagnated in terms of economy, as well as other areas such as in terms of technology. Scientific and technological development in the country has been greatly affected due to the sanctions. Education and research has suffered in this era of scientific and technological advancements due to the fact that the sanctions have hindered access to academic and scientific materials. Employment rates in the country have gone down, causing many graduates in Iran to remain jobless. Thos who are able to move out of the country to search for employment opportunities elsewhere move out, leading to massive brain drain in the country. However, moving out of the country is not so easy due to the fact that those countries that have imposed the sanctions make things very hard. For example, 35 scientists from Iran were denied visas by the Egyptian government to attend a scientific conference in Egypt. These actions have made the country to remain backwards in terms of technological and scientific developments (Katzman, 2009).
Conclusion
From the discussion, it is evident that the sanctions that have been imposed on Iran due to the supposed production of nuclear weapons have had
great effects on the country and its people. However, regardless the effects of the sanctions on the country and its people, the government of Iran does not seem to bend to pressure. It has disregarded the requirements by the United Nations, the United States and other nations in the west to get rid of the said weapons of mass destruction. It also seem highly unlikely that the government of Iran will halter the development of nuclear weapons. This also shows the fact that the sanctions might continue to the future, with worse effects.