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Warsaw conference: Pence presses EU on Iran deal
Summary
A look back at the day a US-hosted ministerial in the Polish capital turned into a public dispute over sanctions and the nuclear agreement.
What did Washington want from Europe in Warsaw? On 14 February 2019, the second day of a conference co-hosted by Poland and the United States, the answer was stated bluntly: U.S. Vice President Mike Pence accused members of the European Union of trying to break U.S. sanctions against Iran, and called on the EU to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
The gathering, held on 13 and 14 February 2019, was commonly known as the US-led Middle East conference in Warsaw. Its joint announcement listed terrorism and extremism, missile development and proliferation, maritime trade and security, and threats posed by proxy groups across the region as the issues for discussion.
A change of emphasis
Earlier in February, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said the purpose of the meeting was to focus on Iran's influence and terrorism in the region. European objections to that framing followed. As a result, the United States was forced to backtrack on plans to build a global coalition against Iran.
Pence's remarks on 14 February therefore stood out against that retreat. They put the disagreement over the nuclear agreement and the enforcement of American sanctions directly before European governments, in a Central European capital that was hosting the event alongside Washington.
