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In the last few weeks of the Trump administration, Iran faces increasing pressure amid concerns over the recent assassination of its leading nuclear scientist and continued US financial sanctions.
“Iran, as stated earlier as our final policy, will independently give a corresponding response to those who ordered and committed this with maximum pain for those who did this,” said Saeed Khatibzadeh, a spokesperson. from the Iranian Foreign Ministry, about Iran’s Friday assassination. senior nuclear scientist.
The Iranian government accuses Israel of killing Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the founder of the Iranian nuclear program that the Israeli government publicly denounced in 2018 when it accused Iran of developing a secret nuclear program.
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In response to the assassination, Iran’s parliament approved a bill that would turn on international arms inspectors and increase uranium production. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council is also expected to approve the measures before the government can enact them.
Iran is also facing increasing pressure from the outgoing Trump administration. Officials said they would advance their maximum pressure operation against Iran until the transfer to Biden’s team.
Part of the campaign against Iran is also to strengthen relations between American allies.
Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner and other current and former US officials are visiting Saudi Arabia and Qatar this week. Administration officials said their goal was to try and resolve a rift that deepened in 2017 and led the Saudis and three of their allies – the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt – to cut diplomatic and economic relations with Qatar.
All three countries are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and U.S. officials have been trying to resolve internal conflicts for years.
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“The divide serves no one except perhaps Iran,” said David Schenker, deputy secretary of the State Department for Near Eastern Affairs in October. Resolving the diplomatic impasse has been “a priority issue for the secretary and the administration for some time, and will continue to be so.” The dispute has gone on for too long, ”he said.
The United States has its largest military presence in the Qatar region at Al Udeid Air Base. Saudi Arabia is a key US ally in countering Iran. The trip also gives administration officials the opportunity to discuss strategy with the Saudis following Fakhrizadeh’s assassination.
The Trump administration continues to push Arab governments to recognize Israel, potentially trying to convince Saudi Arabia and Qatar on that trip to join the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain this year to establish official diplomatic relations with the Israelis.
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Despite the White House’s explanation that resolving the GCC conflict is the goal of the trip, Kushner’s travel group includes Middle East peace negotiator Avi Berkowitz and former Iranian political adviser Brian Hook. Their inclusion, and the absence of any identified Gulf policy experts, suggests that the normalization of Israel and Iran will be on the agenda for talks in Riyadh and Doha, ”said Gerald M. Feierstein, former US Ambassador to Yemen and Senior Vice President of the Middle East Institute.
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