MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th July, 2019) Russia has presented this week its vision of how to ease tensions in and around the Persian Gulf, setting the stage for a tug-of-war with the United States, which has been pushing for more pressure on Iran.
Russia struck a reconciliatory tone in its initiative for Gulf peace, calling for a general reduction in local and foreign armed forces, tighter arms controls, establishment of demilitarized zones and a ban on weapons of mass destruction.
It emphasized that the long-term objective was to create a Gulf security organization that would include, in addition to Gulf countries, Russia, China, the United States, the European Union, India and other stakeholders as observers or associated members.
The plan contrasts sharply with Washington's "maximum pressure" policy and its attempts to build an anti-Iranian coalition to secure shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway through which a third of all seaborne oil passes, after the Iranian military seized a UK-flagged tanker there last week.
The United Kingdom has alienated itself from the United States, with Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt stressing on Monday that London would not be part of the US effort to pile pressure on Iran because it wanted to preserve the Iran nuclear deal. Paris and Berlin appeared to side with London.
Russia's ultimate goal in presenting a plan for Gulf peace was to set itself apart from the United States, said M. V. Ramana, chair in disarmament, global and human security at the University of British Columbia's Liu Institute for Global Issues.
"I think that a key motivation for Russia in releasing this document might be to step up the contest with the United States in the middle East," he told Sputnik.
Kanishkan Sathasivam, a professor of International Relations at Salem State University, said that competitions for influence always grow and never end, and Russia's recent step was another attempt at asserting its presence in the region.
"So this is nothing new. For Russia, this is entirely about doing things that help bolster its claim to being a major state, something that is central to current Russian foreign policy," he noted.
He argued that Russia's true motive when coming forth with the Gulf peace plan was to eject US troops from the region. The United States has been building up its military presence in the Persian Gulf in the past few months, sending warships and pledging to deploy more personnel to Saudi Arabia.
"Russia's intent here is to clearly offer a rival concept to that of the U.S. In fact, the obvious true goal of this proposal is to push U.S. military forces out of the region, under the guise of getting all foreign forces out of the region," Sathasivam said.
A proposal that hinges on the United States downsizing its forces in the Persian Gulf will not only be rejected "outright" in Washington but its Arab allies and Israel will never get behind it, Sathasivam continued.
"Russia is clearly not serious about including the U.S. The U.S. is mentioned in the document because to not do so would automatically delegitimize the proposal," he said.
M. V. Ramana predicted that the "current political conjuncture" in the United States would not allow it to join Russia. But Washington will not have Europe's support for its coalition on shipping security unless it takes the way of diplomacy, he added.
"Such negotiations cannot occur when the United States continues threatening Iran or imposing punitive sanctions," he stressed.
The United States has slapped Iran with a series of tough sanctions after quitting the landmark nuclear deal last year. Core EU countries have so far stuck to the pact and have been honing a mechanism to sidestep US penalties on its companies doing business with Iran.
Sathasivam suggested that Europe might still come around and join the US security coalition if Washington provided assurances that it would not drag it into the conflict with Iran on the nuclear issue. It is especially unlikely that the Europeans will abandon their ally for a Russian plan, he reasoned.
