4m ago
(23:30 GMT)
European stance making US policymakers ‘think twice, three times’ about plans
Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara says Trump’s decision to leave the door open for diplomacy may be linked to pressure from US allies in Europe and
his recent talks with Pakistan’s army chief.
French President Emmanuel Macron has been pushing for diplomacy to be given a chance, Bishara noted. “The other thing that the French [president] said is that he’s totally and vehemently opposed to regime change” in Iran.
Still, Bishara said European leaders will likely not be able to exert enough pressure to change the US position. “But it does make policymakers in Washington think twice, and three times, and give it a week or two weeks, to consider what they’re doing,” he said.
Ultimately, if the US gets involved in Israel’s bombing campaign against Iran, “then the Americans are going to need the Europeans,” Bishara added.
“If [Trump] wants to break up Iran, if he wants to do regime change, he’s going to have to own it. There’s no other way about it, and he doesn’t want to invest anything in Iran, and it’s going to be left to the Europeans,” he said.
“The Europeans are saying from now, ‘We don’t want to get involved in regime change, we don’t want to get involved in bombing nuclear reactors. What we want is a diplomatic pathway towards a solution.'”