Jul 3, 2018

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is in Switzerland as part of a European tour that will take him to Austria for negotiations centered on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The visit comes as Tehran is already feeling the pinch after Washington’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal and is awaiting proposals from the European signatories on how to keep the agreement alive.

Addressing Iranian expatriates in Bern, Rouhani downplayed US claims that it will entirely block Iranian crude oil exports. The president hailed the nuclear deal for boosting Iran’s economic exchanges and creating investment opportunities.

Back at home, the visit hit the headlines in leading papers. “Negotiating the JCPOA in the heart of Europe,” read Bahar, a Reformist paper but also an occasional critic of Rouhani’s policies. An article on the Iran website, the official voice of the administration, highlighted Swiss President Alain Berset’s Persian-language tweet about the visit and that he welcomed Rouhani at Bern Airport. The gesture by Berset was also reflected in a Twitter post by Rouhani adviser Hessamoddin Ashna: “The Swiss president received the Iranian counterpart at the airport in person, [thus] transmitting to the world the Europeans’ message of respect for Iranians.”

“There is no doubt that Rouhani will make it clear to the Europeans that to stay in the deal and defend the European Union’s independence in the face of Donald Trump, they need to demonstrate more valor,” wrote Arman, another Reformist daily. According to the same analysis, worries about US banking sanctions on Iran could be alleviated if Swiss banks maintain their independent policies as they have done traditionally.

However, hard-line dailies such as Javan, Kayhan and Vatan-e-Emrooz were not interested in the latest initiative to forge diplomatic engagement. As merciless critics of the Rouhani administration and his foreign policy, they rather decided to look the other way. Hard-liners have long been cynical of Europe, promoting the notion that it is not a reliable partner and will not sacrifice business with Washington for the sake of the nuclear deal.