UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly
Plans for the United Kingdom to sanction’s Iran’s Revolutionary Guard have been pout on hold after the Foreign Office raised concerns, The Times reported on Thursday.
In the wake of a bloody crackdown on antigovernment protesters in Iran, Britain and the European Union began considering proscribing the Islamic Republic’s leading military, intelligence and internal security juggernaut.
The Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) has also been linked to acts of terror abroad, including threats against Iran International’s journalists working in London. The network’s headquarters in Chiswick came under Metropolitan Police protection in November when threats became serious.
The Times says that while home secretary Suella Braverman and security minister Tom Tugendhat support sanctioning the IRGC, according to sources the Foreign Office has blocked the move, “citing the need to keep communication channels open,” with Iran.
The report added that the Home Office is hopeful that “proscription will eventually progress but it is expected to be delayed by weeks if not months.”
The West’s relations with the Islamic have also soured for a lack of a nuclear agreement after almost two years of talks and Iran’s move to supply Russia with killer drones used against Ukraine.
In a separate ‘Leading Article’ The Times called for listing of the IRGC as a terror organization, saying not doing so would hardly change Tehran’s behavior and policies.
“Yet it is surely time to abandon the illusion that anything useful can be obtained though diplomatic engagement with Tehran. The theocratic regime has long since abandoned any restraint as it clings to power,” The Times said.