UK urged to pile pressure on Iran amid calls for tougher action

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly asked to lead global coalition in reimposing UN sanctions on regime in Tehran

People march in London, to show solidarity with Iranian protesters, as the UK government faces renewed calls to step up its response to Tehran. AFP

The UK government has come under increased pressure to up the ante on Iran over its cruel treatment of protesters, selling of arms to Russia and destabilising actions in the Middle East through its proxies.

Facing questions from MPs in the House of Commons on Tuesday, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly fielded a fresh round of calls for Britain to respond more robustly to Tehran’s record of human rights abuses.

The UK has imposed sanctions on people linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), but stopped short of taking further action against the powerful branch of the Iranian armed forces.

The Conservative government was urged to lead an international coalition in triggering a "snapback" of UN sanctions on Iran under a provision of the nuclear deal.

The clamour for such action has been increasing as Tehran continues its clampdown on anti-government protesters after the death of Mahsa Amini in September. She was arrested on charges of wearing her hijab "inappropriately" and her death in the morality police's custody unleashed years of pent-up anger towards the hardline regime. Thousands of mainly peaceful demonstrators have been detained and campaigners say torture is rife. Four protesters have been executed for their part in the rallies, while dozens more have been given death sentences.

‘Cut ties now’

Tory MP Bob Blackman asked Mr Cleverly if the government would “examine the security” for the British embassy in Tehran and even shut it down in light of the killing of a staff member at Azerbaijan’s embassy on Friday. A gunman stormed the compound in Tehran before shooting the head of the security staff and injuring two other guards.

Mr Blackman said the government should “close our embassy down and close the embassy from Iran in London”.

Mr Cleverly responded by saying he had discussed the issue of security during a recent meeting with Simon Shercliff, the UK’s ambassador to Iran, and added that closing the embassy would not be a good idea.

The Foreign Secretary argued it is “incredibly important” to have a UK government presence in Iran, but he cautioned against equating a diplomatic relationship to a friendly bond.

“The House should understand that diplomatic relations are not some bonus to the host nation or some prize or reward. They are to protect our people and our interests. But we always keep a very close eye on security of the embassy and those members of staff working in it.”

‘When is the UK going to act?’

Tory MP Greg Smith said there had been a “major groundswell” in requests for the UK to proscribe the IRGC and designate it a terrorist organisation, as politicians pressed Mr Cleverly for clarity on the matter.

“This terror organisation’s record speaks for itself: from arming and financing its terror proxies, assisting Putin’s murderous assault on Ukraine, intensified involvement in the international drugs’ trade and now brazenly increasing its activities right here in the United Kingdom,” Mr Smith said.

He asked if the government would heed calls for a proscription and “commit to curtailing the IRGC’s ever-growing threat”.

The Foreign Secretary noted the “malign impact” of the IRGC in the Middle East and the UK, where it has threatened the lives of journalists.

While he declined to be drawn on whether a proscription was in the pipeline, he left the door open for further action to be taken to curtail IRGC campaigns.

David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, pressed Mr Cleverly for a clear answer but failed to gain further insight. He said if Labour was in government, it would proscribe the IRGC either by using existing terrorism legislation or by creating a new process to respond to hostile state actors.

“When is the Foreign Secretary going to act?” Mr Lammy said.

‘Iran’s nuclear programme has never been more advanced’

Mr Cleverly said Iran’s nuclear programme “has sadly never been more advanced than it is today”.

He said the fate of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) — the nuclear deal signed in 2015 by Tehran and world powers — rests solely with Iran.

“Iran continues the escalation of its nuclear activities and in doing so threatens international peace and security,” the Foreign Secretary said. “We continue working closely with our international friends and allies to prevent Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon. The option of engaging more usefully with JCPOA is in the hands of the Iranians — they have spectacularly failed to grasp that opportunity.”

Iran was committed under the JCPOA to limiting its nuclear enrichment in exchange for sanctions relief.

Since the US withdrew and reimposed sanctions in 2018, Tehran has overtly stockpiled and enriched uranium, exceeding the limits of the agreement.

The “snapback” provision in the nuclear pact was raised by Conservative MP Michael Fabricant.

It allows for the reintroduction of terminated UN resolutions in the case of Tehran’s “significant non-performance of commitments under the JCPOA”.

Any signatory state can trigger a snapback which would essentially nullify the deal.

Mr Fabricant said Iran was “seeking to breach the JCPOA by enriching uranium” and urged the UK to lead on responding.

“Now, just as we have led the world in helping Ukraine, can I ask that we be the main country now to initiate the … snapback of the JCPOA agreement in order to show that Iran can’t get away without having sanctions applied,” he said.

Mr Cleverly said the future of the deal lay with Iran, but the country’s leaders “as in so many other areas, have demonstrated spectacular failure of judgment”.

“The sanctions that are imposed against them, it is in their gift to alleviate those through their actions,” Mr Cleverly said. “They have spectacularly failed to do so and of course we reserve the right to take further such actions if they do not desist in their attempt to acquire nuclear weapons.”

Mr Cleverly was also questioned about what action he was taking to counter Iran’s military threat faced by the UK’s allies.

He said the regime’s actions through militia proxies in the Middle East and also its supply of weapons to Russia were “completely unacceptable”, and said Britain and its allies would work together “to take further actions to make it clear that this behaviour is unacceptable”.