France playing Iran card to gain privileges from Washington

TEHRAN,May 22(MNA)--In his recent visit to Washington, French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian asked U.S. officials to impose more sanctions on Iran in order to neutralize Tehran’s alleged strategy of wasting time in the talks with the six major powers and to protect the enforcement of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. However, European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton described her recent meeting in Istanbul with Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, as positive and constructive. Thus, the meeting was another setback for the anti-Iran front, in which France is beginning to play a major role. The intensification of France’s rhetoric on Iran should be analyzed from various perspectives. By calling for more sanctions on Iran, Paris seems to be kowtowing to the U.S. hardliners who are constantly accusing Iran of attempting to produce nuclear weapons. During his visit to Washington, Le Drian also met the chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Carl Levin, and discussed the Syria crisis. This shows that the French government is increasingly engaging itself in Washington’s hawkish plans against Iran and its allies in the Middle East. The French defense minister even asked U.S. officials to consider a limited military option against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The crisis in Syria has harmed France’s interests in Syria, and Paris is desperately trying to restore its position in the Arab country. Playing the Iran card, since the Islamic Republic is Syria’s strongest ally in the region, seems to be the major strategy Paris has adopted to cooperate with the far right in the United States and prepare the ground for a war on Syria. The heightened rhetoric about Iran actually gave Le Drian what he anticipated. According to reports, U.S. officials have agreed to sell Paris surveillance drones in order to enhance France’s military capabilities. A deal has even been inked between the two sides enabling France to buy two Reaper drones from a U.S. corporation. Those familiar with the process of such sensitive deals know that the purchase of these highly advanced drones requires the endorsement of various lobby groups, many of which are hard liners. It seems that the French defense minister’s anti-Iran remarks enabled Paris to acquire such a great privilege. Ali Akbar Farazi is a specialist on European politics and formerly served as Iran’s ambassador to Romania and Hungary. (Ali Akbar Farazi)