Amid current news headlines about North Korea and related nuclear issues, it is important not to ignore the potential schism that could occur in the G7 world as a consequence of the practical fallout from Donald Trump’s decision on May 8 to exit the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO EUROPEAN INVESTMENTS IN IRAN? One practical issue is what is going to happen to European investments in Iran. The most high profile example is French energy company Total’s investment in a giant Iran gasfield. Total said this month it would pull out of Iran and its development of the giant South Pars gasfield unless it is specifically protected from US penalties and related sanctions (see Financial Times article “ Total threat to pull out of Iran dents EU hopes of saving accord ”, May 17, 2018). Obviously, some form of compromise may be negotiated. But if Washington […]