Let’s take Europe’s transformations seriously.
Taking Europe’s transformations seriously, this solar and Gregorian year is witnessing multiple elections worldwide.
According to the announced statistics, over sixty countries around the world will witness various elections at the level of presidential, councils, national parliaments, or the European Parliament this year.
During the past two weeks, close to thirty European countries held elections for the European Parliament and sometimes their national parliaments. These events led to significant occurrences, such as political changes in France and the far-right party overtaking other parties, including the ruling party, and announcing its readiness to seize power nationally. As a result, the President of France was forced to dissolve the country’s parliament and announce early elections in France.
On the other hand, in the next three weeks, precisely on July 4th, the UK will also witness parliamentary elections. It seems that after nearly 14 years of absolute rule by the Conservative Party on the island of England, the Labour Party, with a noticeable difference and around twenty percent lead it has already created over the Conservative Party in polls, will win in the upcoming elections and take over power, becoming the successor to the Conservative Party in the British Prime Minister position.
Although the appearance of the matter tells of the process of democracy in these countries and the replacement of traditional parties with each other in the path of power rotation, the rise of the Labor Party with specific tendencies in the face of international developments, especially the clear differences in views between this party and the conservative party on the Middle East issue, particularly Palestine and the Gaza war, is of great importance.
Based on the positions declared by the leader of the Labor Party regarding the events in Gaza, in addition to accepting the two-state solution for the future of Palestine, in light of Israel’s performance in Gaza, the Labor Party in the UK, like some other European countries such as France, Belgium, Spain, the Nordic countries, has expressed its readiness to recognize a Palestinian state.
Therefore, if the predictions and polls in the upcoming elections in three weeks in the UK come true, a significant and influential shift in UK policies in the Middle East and the Palestine issue is on the verge of happening in the post-Elizabeth II and King Charles era.
Although in the current circumstances, Jeremy Corbyn, the former leader and charismatic figure of the Labour Party, who was a supporter of the brave Palestine issue and changing Britain’s policy in the Middle East, is not at the helm of the Labour Party, the inclination towards Palestine and the shift in Britain’s traditional views in the Middle East within the Labour Party still remains strong. Despite some relatively different perspectives of the current leader of this party compared to Corbyn’s views, hopes for strategic transformation of the Labour Party regarding the Palestine issue will still create expectations for the Middle East region.
This shift in the traditional policies of England in the Middle East comes at a time when the United States is striving to bring about closeness and create conditions for new strategic relations and security agreements with Saudi Arabia to pave the way for the enrichment and change of the Saudi Crown Prince for establishing relations with Israel within the framework of Washington and Tel Aviv’s interests in the region.
It should be noted that in the final years of the twelfth government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the historic meeting between the then Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iran and Mr. Jeremy Corbyn, the then Secretary General of the Labour Party in the UK, in London was considered a significant and influential point in Tehran-London relations. Although Corbyn continued his leadership in the Labour Party, he stepped aside due to disagreements with some of the party’s more hawkish and Atlanticist factions, such as the Tony Blair faction, which at the time also had influence in international community representation on Middle Eastern issues. Despite significant capabilities in the past parliamentary elections in the UK, Corbyn’s Labour Party lost to the Conservative Party and he was forced to step down from leadership. However, he is still considered one of the influential figures in the Labour Party’s governance structure.
It should be noted that the future government of Britain, which is expected to be a Labour government, will face a lot of criticism due to the current conservative government’s support for Netanyahu and Israel in the Gaza war. The one-sided and biased positions of the current Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and the Indian-origin Conservative Party in Britain on the Gaza issue and the traditional stance of British conservatives in supporting Israel will put London in a difficult and complicated situation in the Middle East developments. Therefore, if this party can win the elections after July 4th, the Labour Party’s readiness to recognize a Palestinian government in the peace process in the region is very important.
Certainly, in this regard, some of Mr. Keir Starmer’s positions as the current leader of the Labour Party in his policies towards Israel in Gaza and his refusal to accept arms sanctions against Israel have also brought many criticisms to the Labour Party. This is happening at a time when the Labour Party in the UK has gained significant attention from a large portion of pro-Palestinian voters in the past years due to its close positions and generous support for the Palestinian cause. Therefore, pursuing and emphasizing these policies will have an influential role in attracting British voters on election day.
Of course, the past records of parties indicate that when they come to power, their fundamental positions become less prominent compared to when they acted as opposition parties and shadow government against the ruling party.
In this context, Tony Blair’s performance as the Labour Prime Minister of the UK during the Iraq War and his unquestioning support for the US and George Bush Jr. in the military attack on the region had a very inappropriate history for the Labour Party. To escape from this past, this party must definitely take appropriate actions to dispel suspicions about its socialist positions.
The positions of the Labour Party during Jeremy Corbyn’s tenure, especially regarding the JCPOA negotiations and nuclear issues, and the party’s constructive stance in supporting and endorsing these negotiations are another aspect of the diplomatic commitments of the Labour Party in dealing differently with Iran’s fundamental and international positions on the JCPOA.
Although the issue of Palestine and the Gaza war in the current circumstances has directed London’s positions towards developments in Palestine, this matter will not negate London’s strategic relations in the Middle East.
Currently, the economic relations between the UK and the Gulf Cooperation Council amount to over 40 billion euros, and Egypt alone has annual economic exchanges of 5 billion euros with London, which are not easily replaceable for London’s fragile economic situation. Inactive capacities in economic relations with Tehran could outline another hopeful prospect for the island.
The Labour Party has also stated that it respects the decision of the Hague judiciary regarding the arrest warrant of the Israeli Prime Minister, and will accept it. Although, in the post-Brexit era, London did not have favorable conditions in light of the Conservative Party’s positions, the Labour Party seeks closer and more active relations with the European Union by accepting the UK’s position on leaving the EU.
Given the current situation and the outlook for developments in post-European Parliament elections Europe and political aftershocks in many countries, including France, expectations have arisen for the future Labour government in Britain after the July 4th elections, whether it will be able to establish Middle East diplomatic relations within the framework of developing and promoting different solutions or not.
According to experts’ predictions, the leader of the Labour Party is facing significant pressures to adopt different approaches to Palestine-supportive policies than those of Corbyn’s era.
However, Israel’s criminal actions in Gaza have forced her to prioritize the recognition of the Palestinian government, presenting challenges and opportunities for London in the Middle East. It seems that the future diplomacy of the Labour Party in the Middle East should focus on emphasizing security, cooperation, development, and progress in the region regarding the Palestinian issue.
In any case, Europe, especially in light of the current elections and what is happening in London and Paris, is awaiting the results of these two countries’ elections and the future course of events and their impact on the Middle East.
Therefore, it seems that whatever results from these developments will provide a golden opportunity for influencing and taking responsibility for the changes in the realm of national interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
As previously mentioned, the positions of the Labour Party in the UK towards Palestine and the Gaza war have clear differences with the traditional policies of the Conservative Party in the Middle East. The historic meeting between the Foreign Minister of the twelfth government and the former leader of the Labour Party in London is a consideration that could have positive effects on the current developments in the Middle East and US diplomacy in bringing Arab countries closer and establishing relations with the Israeli regime, as well as the two-state solution and official recognition of the Palestinian government.
If the turmoil of the fourteenth presidential election does not monopolize all the energy and political attention of the country, the current situation has once again created an opportunity for national interests. The fourteenth government must now play a role in designing, taking responsibility, and effectively influencing national interests in the developments in the Middle East.
