Opinion
Starmer should align with Trump policy on Iran
There is a series of measures that would have us standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the US
November 21, 2024 11:09
3 min read
There is a series of measures that would have us standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the US
November 21, 2024 11:09Nigel Farage was the most rational person in the room. I never thought I’d be saying those words – but hear me out.
Last week, after highlighting the FBI’s evidence that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was behind the latest assassination attempt on newly elected president Donald Trump, Farage called on Sir Keir Starmer to proscribe the IRGC. But other than a visibly angry Jeremy Corbyn in the background, it was the rationale Farage provided for the proscribing the IRGC that really stood out.
The Reform UK Leader and Trump ally asserted that proscribing “what is so obviously a terrorist organisation” was not just the “right thing to do but would mend some fences between the [Labour] government and the incoming presidency of Trump”. Starmer, of course, provided a somewhat stale, pale and scripted response to Farage, suggesting the proscription of the IRGC was “under review”.
The truth is, however, that previous ill-judged and amateurish attacks on Trump by MPs who are now members of the Labour government – including from Foreign Secretary David Lammy – have put the “special relationship” at risk. After all, if one lesson can be learnt from the first Trump administration, it’s that the president-elect does take things personally.
But the Starmer-Trump relationship is still salvageable if the Prime Minister can put national interest above party politics. The fix is getting tough on Tehran.
The regime in Iran constitutes one of the most immediate national security threats to Britain. As in the US, the IRGC is proactively plotting terror on British streets and nurturing home-grown Islamist radicalisation and extreme antisemitism in the UK. In April, the IRGC successfully committed an act of terrorism in London, orchestrating an attack on British-Iranian journalist Pouria Zeraati in Wimbledon, where he was stabbed four times outside his home. Since 2022, a further 20 IRGC terror plots have been foiled in Britain.
Beyond the domestic terror threat, the actions of the Iranian regime abroad also pose a serious challenge to British interests. These range from its striving to acquire nuclear weapons to its provision of lethal weapons for Russia’s war in Ukraine and critical support for designated UK terrorist groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas.
Starmer and Trump are no match made in heaven. But if the Prime Minister is looking for a policy issue where UK interests are aligned with those of the incoming administration, Iran is the solution.
We shouldn’t stop at IRGC proscription. Britain should stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the US when the new administration reimposes its “maximum pressure” policy against the regime. In pursuit of this, Lammy should trigger snapback sanctions (a legal mechanism to restore UN sanctions agreed previously) against the IRGC-controlled nuclear programme, a weaponisation project in all but name. This would further isolate the clerical regime on the world stage. And while a tougher stance on Iran’s regime is likely to be met with resistance from an increasingly appeasing European Union, the UK is – as a result of Brexit – uniquely placed to act as the bridge between Trump and the EU.
Beyond this, Labour has been vocal about putting human rights at the centre of the UK’s foreign policy. As Trump advances “maximum pressure” against Tehran, Starmer should spearhead a policy of “maximum solidarity” with the Iranian people to help advance their democratic aspirations against the tyrannical regime.
To do this, Starmer should draw up plans to use frozen Iranian assets to support a strike fund for the people of Iran. There is precedent for this, given that the UK has used frozen Russian assets in aid of Ukraine, a move that rattled the Ayatollah’s regime.
Starmer should also be in Trump’s ear to convince the president-elect to pressure his adviser, Elon Musk, to provide Starlink to the Iranian people. This will be vital the next time the regime imposes an internet blackout to censor its bloodshed on the streets.
Finally, the UK should set up a taskforce on Iran that specialises in public diplomacy in the Persian language. This should help embolden the Iranian people, while also advancing an advanced psychological operations campaign against the regime and its IRGC with the intent of weakening, dividing and undermining it. Does this sound too much? Well, this is exactly what the IRGC is proactively conducting against us in the UK.
Put simply, getting tough on Iran’s regime should be the carrot Starmer offers to Trump. Doing so would provide the Labour government with an opening to mend relations with the president-elect, salvage the “special relationship” and, more importantly, restore Britain on the world stage. This should be a no-brainer for the prime minister. It’s time to put the national interest above party politics.
Kasra Aarabi is the director for IRGC Research at United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI)