It may not take Iran a long time to circumvent – even if partially - the effects of the newly-ratified international sanctions resolution and absorb some of its economic and financial repercussions, whether through the same methods it adopted to maneuver around the previous sanctions or via new means devised by the Iranian political planners. However, although Washington assured that the new package will carry a real wide-scale impact on Tehran and will tighten the noose around its economic and military institutions, the strength of the new resolution mainly resides in the symbolism of the consensus among the superpowers over it, after some of them – and especially Russia and China – showed reluctance or abstained from voting during the previous times. Therefore, this constituted an international blow to the Iranian regime and particularly to President Ahmadinejad who succeeded – within one year after the decision of Supreme Guide Khamenei to “extend” his term – to alienate the entire world almost in full, including the sides which do not agree with the policies of the United States and sometimes even perceive them as being a source of threat and maybe projects of confrontation, as it is the case with the deployment of American missile defense systems in Eastern Europe or the armament of Taiwan. The policy of defiance with which Ahmadinejad faced the world and his loud and improvised statements that failed to reflect the usual reservation and astuteness of the Iranian religious institution, contributed to the weaving of consensus over the sanctioning of his country. Consequently, apart from the states seeking a regional role such as Turkey, those trying to “harass” the Americans such as Brazil or the ones forced to neither say “yes” nor “no” such as Lebanon, the remaining members of the Security Council and what they represent in terms of regional groups all supported the sanctions. The last clash in which the Iranian president “succeeded” and which will carry harmful consequences whose signs have already started surfacing, was firstly seen when he warned Russia against turning into Iran's enemy, to which the latter responded by calling on him to stop his “political demagogy.” Ahmadinejad also announced he will not partake in the conference of the “Shanghai Cooperation Organization” which includes China, Russia and four Central Asian states and which is being held in Tashkent today, although Iran expressed its wish to join this regional group. It is likely that Moscow preferred not to see him attend, at a time when agreements between the two countries will undoubtedly be affected by both this clash and the sanctions, whether at the level of the S-300 missiles deal or the operation of the Bouchehr reactor. True, besieging Iran will be a difficult and complicated task which will require coordinated and long-term efforts due to the country's strength, wealth, its open border with six states and three seas and its influence in geographically-distant areas such as Lebanon and Gaza. However, the international isolation surrounding it is growing and is prone to enter more difficult stages if the Iranian leaders continue to believe that the policy of confrontation at the level of the nuclear file will be more lucrative and that stringency both domestically and abroad is the only way to protect their regime from change. This is especially true as the one-year anniversary of the presidential elections will be commemorated on Saturday - in light of the turmoil which accompanied them and led to a bloody oppression campaign that targeted the opposition which was protesting against falsification - and as these practices are ongoing until this day and will escalate if the oppositionists were to decide to take to the streets once again. The sanctions resolution stands as a reminder to Tehran that it must change and willingly relinquish the use of violence, money and nuclear ambitions to impose its regional role, or else, these means will gradually erode and will wash away the desired role.
