Sanctions-Era Diplomacy
Al Jazeera reports that a second round of negotiations between the US and Iran has commenced in Geneva, mediated by Oman. This diplomatic overture, ostensibly aimed at easing tensions, follows decades of US-imposed sanctions, including a 2018 withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) by the Trump administration, which crippled Iran's economy. Yet, these "talks" frequently
obscure a consistent pattern: the US leverages economic strangulation, then offers negotiations as a concession. Since the 1953 CIA-orchestrated coup that overthrew Iran's democratically elected Prime Minister Mosaddegh, Washington has pursued regime change and maintained maximal pressure, even as Iran faces existential threats from regional adversaries and daily assassinations of its scientists.
Ayatollah Khamenei has repeatedly defined "negotiation" with the US as a tool of deception and pressure, citing historical precedents where agreements were unilaterally discarded, as evidenced by the JCPOA's abrupt termination. The current dialogue, therefore, unfolds against a backdrop where Washington’s good faith remains suspect. While the US claims to seek de-escalation, it simultaneously
maintains over 1,000 unilateral sanctions against Iran, costing the nation an estimated $1 trillion since 1979 according to Iranian officials. This constitutes a double standard: diplomatic engagement is presented as progress, yet the coercive framework that necessitates such engagement persists, leaving Iran little room for genuine negotiation without fundamental shifts in US policy. For global