Search for ‘optical victory’ in Iran-America tension, foreign affairs expert’s big claim on Trump’s strategy

Foreign policy expert Robinder Sachdev has given a big statement regarding the increasing tension between America and Iran. He said that in this entire dispute, “visual victory” (symbolic victory) has a more important role than strategy, which America wants to show at the global level.

In an interview, Sachdev said that US President Donald Trump wants a symbolic moment which can be presented as a major achievement to the whole world. He said, “Trump wants to get a picture of Iran’s uranium drums being captured by the US military. This would be a visual that he can present as his victory.”

He said that such an image would become a symbol of a country’s surrender, which Iran is in no position to accept. For this reason there is a deadlock in the talks.

Talking on economic issues, Sachdev said that America’s exemption on oil import from Russia can bring relief to India. He said that the availability of Russian oil amid the current crisis can prove to be extremely beneficial for the Indian economy, as it will take time to restore supplies from the Gulf countries.

Regarding Iran-US talks, he said that if all parties are involved in the talks, the chances of an agreement may increase, although it will not be a “grand deal”. He predicted that the probability of agreement is about 51 percent.

Regarding the Strait of Hormuz, he said that in any solution it is necessary for this important sea route to remain open. He said that Iran can demand economic compensation and relief from sanctions in return.

He also said that the talks would mainly focus on three issues—sanctions relief, return of funds stuck abroad and economic compensation.

Regarding NATO and Europe, Sachdev said that America and President Trump are dissatisfied with the policies of Europe, especially regarding defense and environmental policies. He said that America believes that European countries are not contributing equally to defense expenditure.

This statement has come at a time when there are increased concerns in global politics regarding US-Iran tension, oil supply and the situation in the Middle East.