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Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband meets Boris Johnson Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband meets Boris Johnson
(35 minutes later)
The husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has described his meeting with Boris Johnson as “positive and constructive”, but faced a new setback on Wednesday as the Foreign Office questioned the usefulness of granting her diplomatic protection. The husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has described a meeting with Boris Johnson as “positive and constructive” but faced a new setback on Wednesday as the Foreign Office questioned the usefulness of granting her diplomatic protection.
Richard Ratcliffe, whose British-Iranian wife has been imprisoned in Iran since April 2016, had been granted a first face-to-face meeting with the foreign secretary. Afterwards he said Johnson had no fixed date for his planned visit to Iran, but that he was keen for him to travel with him. Richard Ratcliffe, whose wife has been imprisoned in Iran since April 2016, was speaking after he was granted a first face-to-face meeting with the foreign secretary.
Ratcliffe told a press conference after the meeting that he had pressed Johnson to give his wife diplomatic protection. The Labour MP Tulip Siddiq, who accompanied Ratcliffe to the meeting, said Johnson had not ruled out such a move. As Tehran indicated that it would not entertain the idea of diplomatic protection, which would escalate the case of the jailed British-Iranian mother, Ratcliffe acknowledged the legal and practical difficulties it would entail.
But earlier on Wednesday the Iranian government signalled via its state news agency that it would not entertain the idea. And in its statement after the meeting, the Foreign Office hinted at scepticism that the provision of diplomatic protection would be of practical help in trying to secure her release. But he said that it would send “a strong signal”, arguing that soft diplomacy had not worked and that he deemed it appropriate for her case to be escalated.
It said: “The foreign secretary and officials outlined that the key question is whether diplomatic protection will have a positive impact on the case, given all the representations that have already been made.” “I said I thought it would be important and helpful,” he said. “The foreign secretary and the Foreign Office expressed reservations, and we agreed that there are some questions that we have sent from the lawyers.
“They have agreed to answer the questions and then for the lawyers to sit down and talk it through. Both legally and then also practically. But certainly, I think it is an important thing for us to be pushing for.”
He added: “I am hopeful that he will do everything he can. He didn’t say he’ll guarantee it, his job is to manage my expectations. I think it was an important meeting for us as a campaign.”
On his other request to accompany the foreign secretary on his visit to Tehran, Ratcliffe said Johnson told him that he was “keen” for him to go but was taking advice on the matter. “It’s important for me to go, but it’s a big ask, reasonably unprecedented,” Ratcliffe said. He said the UK ambassador in Tehran had held a meeting with the deputy foreign minister on Wednesday to discuss the case.
Iran signalled earlier on Wednesday that it would not countenance the diplomatic protection step because it does not recognise dual nationality. Tehran, which treats Zaghari-Ratcliffe solely as an Iranian, has indicated any such move would trigger a severe reaction.
The Irna state news agency, which reflects the views of the Iranian establishment, carried an article which said: “As Zaghari has dual British-Iranian citizenship, and Iran doesn’t recognise her British citizenship, the principle is fundamentally impractical.”
In its statement after the meeting, the Foreign Office hinted at scepticism that the provision of diplomatic protection would be of practical help in trying to secure her release. It said: “The foreign secretary and officials outlined that the key question is whether diplomatic protection will have a positive impact on the case, given all the representations that have already been made.”
In a bid to resolve the issue with Ratcliffe’s lawyers, the Foreign Office said its lawyers would hold direct talks on the issue over the next fortnight.In a bid to resolve the issue with Ratcliffe’s lawyers, the Foreign Office said its lawyers would hold direct talks on the issue over the next fortnight.
Johnson also expressed scepticism about the value of Ratcliffe accompanying him on his visit to Tehran saying in a statement that his “overriding principle in handling this case is to secure a permanent family reunion, not a temporary one”. Johnson also expressed doubt about the value of Ratcliffe accompanying him on his visit to Tehran, saying in a statement that his “overriding principle in handling this case is to secure a permanent family reunion, not a temporary one”.
In practice both sides know it will be for the Iranian authorities to decide whether to give Ratcliffe a visa to accompany Johnson, a step that would effectively ensure he would be allowed to visit his wife in jail.In practice both sides know it will be for the Iranian authorities to decide whether to give Ratcliffe a visa to accompany Johnson, a step that would effectively ensure he would be allowed to visit his wife in jail.
Some in the Foreign Office have also voiced private doubts about whether Ratcliffe would be safe in Tehran, even if he was in the company of the foreign secretary.Some in the Foreign Office have also voiced private doubts about whether Ratcliffe would be safe in Tehran, even if he was in the company of the foreign secretary.
Some diplomats may be concerned that the trip could be dominated by the Zaghari-Ratcliffe issue or wider consular matters, and want to ensure political space remains to discuss the future of the Iran deal, as well as easing UK-Iranian business ties. Some diplomats may be concerned that the trip could be dominated by the Zaghari-Ratcliffe issue or wider consular matters, and want to ensure political space remains to discuss the future of the Iran nuclear deal, as well as easing UK-Iranian business ties.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s family is seeking diplomatic protection in order to escalate her case from a consular issue to a state matter. Zaghari-Ratcliffe is in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, serving a five-year jail sentence on charges of spying and trying to topple the Iranian establishment. Her case has drawn huge attention in the UK since Johnson mistakenly said earlier this month that she was training journalists in Iran, despite her family insisting she was there on holiday with her daughter.
Iran signalled earlier on Wednesday that it would not countenance such a step because it does not recognise dual nationality. Tehran, which treats Zaghari-Ratcliffe solely as an Iranian, has indicated any such move would trigger a severe reaction. At the press conference, Ratcliffe sought to keep the focus on the next steps for his wife rather than Johnson’s misleading statement and subsequent apology, saying: “Moving forward is the right thing.”
The Irna state news agency, which reflects the views of the Iranian establishment, carried an article saying that the principle of giving her diplomatic protection, even if it did not extend to diplomatic immunity, was fundamentally impractical. He said that he remained “deeply worried about her health on a different levels” and that she would see a specialist next Saturday after it emerged she had developed lumps in her breasts, which had led to cancer fears.
“Her family spoke to her yesterday, she was very traumatised by watching the television [repeating that she’s a spy]. I absolutely believe her that she’s on the verge of nervous breakdown,” he said. “The attention of the world would move the Iranian government to find a way to solve this.”
Tulip Siddiq, the Labour MP for Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s constituency, said at the press conference that it was important for Johnson to meet her constituent in prison. She said: “He’s keen to take Richard with him. Bear in mind he has been trying to get a visa for the past 19 months and he has’t been successful. Gabriella has lost her ability to speak English. If he gets to go with the foreign secretary, he’ll get to see Gabriella for the first time in 19 months.”
Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 38 is in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, serving a five-year jail sentence on charges of spying and trying to topple the Iranian establishment. “The foreign secretary is keen to meet Nazanin in the prison, otherwise it’s a waste of a trip. He said he’ll leave no stone unturned,” she said.
The Revolutionary Guards, the elite Iranian forces that arrested her at the airport, have accused her of attempting to orchestrate a “soft overthrow” of the Islamic Republic. She and her young daughter, Gabriella, who is now three, were about to return to the UK from Iran after a family visit. When asked how he was coping on a personal level, Ratcliffe said: “Obviously [I’m] looking a bit tired, not going to work very much.” Describing the ordeal as “exhausting”, he said: “Where you have a situation where my words are closer to the front pages than they were before, there’s a greater responsibility … I’m muddling through.”
Her case has drawn huge attention in the UK since Johnson mistakenly said earlier this month that she was training journalists in Iran, despite her family insisting she was there on holiday with her daughter.
Iran’s response to the idea of diplomatic protection came in the form of an Irna interview with an anonymous Iranian international law expert, but the gravity of the matter indicates it also reflected the official view.
The Iranian source told Irna: “According to certain British newspapers, Zaghari’s husband had referred to some legal advisers to investigate the possibility of such a move; and evidently, some of the advisers have approved of the move.
“But, as it turns out, they have not paid attention to the fact that the principle of political protection is applicable to the citizens of the protecting country; thus, in as much as, Zaghari has dual British-Iranian citizenship, and Iran doesn’t recognise her British citizenship, the principle is fundamentally impractical.”
Downing Street said on Monday that the UK government was considering the possibility of giving Zaghari-Ratcliffe diplomatic protection.
The Free Nazanin campaign said on Wednesday that diplomatic protection served as a recognition of the severity of the case and the stage the case had reached. It said the family were pursuing the matter because her detention constituted an “internationally wrongful act”, because local remedies had been exhausted, because she was “predominant British nationality” and quiet diplomacy had failed to yield a result.
Giving diplomatic protection is not the same as diplomatic immunity, under which diplomatic and consular staff cannot be prosecuted. It is a state-to-state mechanism under which a matter is moved beyond the usual consular level to a position where the state making the move is formally seeking redress over an issue.
The Iranian expert told Irna: “In Iran’s view, Zaghari is an Iranian citizen, and was tried, due to her illegal actions, and convicted in Iranian courts; and now she is serving her sentence. Hence, the UK’s interference, other than through the peaceful paths and humanitarian issues, is considered an intervention in Iran, and will [naturally] trigger off Iran’s severe reaction.”