The EU last week decided to keep its sanctions on Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi but at the same time allow him to get visas for visits to Europe as part of a compromise when faced by a strong anti-Iran stand by the government of the Netherlands.
The EU imposed sanctions on Salehi in November 2009 when he was in charge of Iran’s nuclear program. The sanctions barred him from visiting EU states and froze any assets he might have inside the EU.
When he became foreign minister a few months ago, EU officials indicated they would undoubtedly lift the sanctions. That would be the normal practice for anyone who becomes a foreign minister.
But, as the Iran Times reported last week in its lead story, the EU did not do that. The EU documents issued after the EU foreign ministers met specifically said they had renewed sanctions on Salehi as foreign minister, a very undiplomatic and consciously nasty decision.
But after the foreign ministers left town, an EU spokesperson revealed that the ministers had also agreed, but not put in writing, that Salehi would be given visas like any other foreign minister—the visa ban was being “suspended.” It appeared the EU was trying to have its cake and eat it too—slamming Salehi on paper while quietly lifting the impact of the paper in reality.
Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, said, “Technically, he stays on the [sanctions] list, but the application of the travel ban has been suspended.” She acknowledged that this was not normal.
According to Reuters, the majority of EU members favored doing the normal thing and simply removing all sanctions from Salehi. But the Netherlands was the hard-nosed member of the 27-nation EU and would not agree because Iran had executed a Dutch-Iranian dual national.
The Dutch are furious with Iran over its execution in January of a dual national woman, Zahra Bahrami, who was accused of drug trafficking.
Dutch Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal told the Dutch parliament that Iran refused to give Dutch diplomats consular access to Bahrami while she was detained. Iran does not recognize dual nationality and routinely refuses to allow foreign embassies to visit dual nationals in jail.
But Rosenthal said the Netherlands had researched the issue and concluded the Netherlands has the right to provide consular support to Dutch nationals even if they also hold Iranian nationality.
Rosenthal told the parliament the Netherlands could take Iran to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, but is not planning to do so at this time, in part because Iran has agreed to engage in a consular dialogue with Iran. The first talks were held last week, he said.
Some suggested Tehran was just diddling the Netherlands, stringing matters out as it frequently does. They argued there was no way Iran would agree to give the Dutch consular access to dual nationals because it would then have to give similar access to all other countries.
In Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast denounced the continuation of Salehi’s name on the formal sanctions list. He said it was illegal for a foreign minister to be placed on such a list under international law. There is no such international law, though there is a custom of not placing legal restrictions on foreign ministers. The violation of that custom is not illegal, but is a firm political rebuke to the Islamic Republic, a point Mehman-Parast chose to ignore.