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Foreign Policy Update

IRAN

The latest impartial report from the United Nations Secretary-General on Iran indicates that the United States was correct all along when it comes to what types of weapons Iran uses to destabilize the Middle East and foment sectarian violence and terrorism across the region.

“Let’s never accept Iran’s usual violent behavior for fear of something far worse… Let’s never submit to extortion… Let’s uphold the mission of this body to address threats to international peace and security… Let’s continue the arms embargo on Iran,” said Secretary of State Michael Pompeo. He called on the Security Council to act to exert more, not less pressure on Tehran.

According to the UN report, the weapons used to attack Saudi Arabia in September 2019 were of Iranian origin. It noted that Iran intentionally misled the world by claiming that the Houthis were responsible for the attack last September.  The State Department noted that the report also concluded that arms and related materiel seized off the coast of Yemen in November 2019 and February 2020 were of Iranian origin. “The fact these items were seized outside of Iran is indicative of an arms embargo violation by Iran,” it pointed out.

At a news briefing the Secretary said that the arms embargo is not a time-limited matter, but a  conditions-based matter. The US will only life the embargo when Iran acts consistently as a normal nation-state, he said. 

CHINA-HONG KONG

“The Chinese Communist Party’s decision to impose draconian national security legislation on Hong Kong destroys the territory’s autonomy and one of China’s greatest achievements” according to the State Department. Within the past few years, the Department noted in a press release, Beijing has also violated its agreements with the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, and the United Nations. 

Secretary Pompeo announced that “The United States will not stand idly by while China swallows Hong Kong into its authoritarian maw. Last week, we imposed visa restrictions on CCP officials responsible for undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy. We are ending defense and dual-use technology exports to the territory. Per President Trump’s instruction, we will eliminate policy exemptions that give Hong Kong different and special treatment, with few exceptions.”

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 SYRIA

At the fourth Brussels conference on Syria yesterday, the United States announced almost $700 million in humanitarian assistance to support Syrians inside the country and displaced abroad, bringing the US total funding to just over $11.3 billion since the conflict began more than nine years ago.

RUSSIA

There have been many media reports this week about Moscow offering a bounty for American military. According to Pompeo, this is nothing new and the US sees these types of threats daily around the globe. He added that “…the fact that the Russians are engaged in Afghanistan in a way that’s adverse to the United States is nothing new… Some members of Congress who are out there today suggesting that they are shocked and appalled by this, they saw the same intelligence that we saw.  So it would be interesting to ask them what they did when they saw whatever intelligence it is that they are referring to.  They would have had access to this information as well – not just the intelligence committees, by the way – even more broadly than that.”

Russian entities, he added, have been selling small arms that have put Americans at risk there for 10 years. Money flowing to Afghanistan to support the Taliban has been going on since US went to Afghanistan almost two decades ago. The Iranians continue to undermine Washington in Afghanistan. 

“This administration has taken seriously the threat from Russia.  I only wish we had not had so much to clean up from the previous administration’s work to allow Russia to get on the ground in Syria, make enormous gains, interfere in elections in the United States of America under the previous administration’s watch.  We’ve had a lot to clean up, and President Trump has been serious about responding to this in a way that protects America, keeps Americans safe, and every day working diligently to make sure that we keep our soldiers safe wherever any threat, whether that’s from Russia or otherwise, presents itself.,” Pompeo said.

DARIA NOVAK served in the United States State Department during the Reagan Administration, and currently is on the Board of the American Analysis of News and Media Inc., which publishes usagovpolicy.com and the New York Analysis of Policy and Government.  Each Saturday, she presents key updates on U.S. foreign policy from the State Department.

Illustration: Pixabay