The European Union (EU) wants to further increase pressure against Iran. Meeting on Monday, October 14, the Foreign Ministers of the Twenty-seven announced a new round of sanctions against Tehran, accused of having delivered missiles and drones to Russia, but also to its affiliated groups in the Middle East, such as Hezbollah. These sanctions come two weeks after Iran’s attack on Israel.
Europe has decided to sanction seven entities, including the airline Iran Air, accused of having delivered weapons to Moscow. The EU also included two companies involved in the production of fuel for launching rockets and missiles on its sanctions list. European ministers also decided to impose sanctions on seven new officials, including Iran’s Deputy Defense Minister Seyed Hamzeh Ghalandari and senior Iranian military officials. In the process, London presented a new wave of sanctions targeting a dozen officials and organizations.
If the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, did not rule on these measures on Monday, the president of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, for her part, welcomed this decision and asked that we go ” further “ in the sanctions against the Tehran regime. The National Council of Resistance of Iran, an organization of Iranians in exile, also welcomed the new measures. “The clerical regime uses all the resources and capabilities of the country, including civil organizations, to promote its objectives of repression and export of terrorism and extremism”estimates Shahin Gobadi, of the foreign affairs committee of this council.
“Destructive policies”
“After the ballistic missile attack against Israel, we hold Iran accountabledeclares, for his part, David Lammy, British Foreign Secretary. With our allies and partners, we will continue to take necessary steps to counter Iran’s unacceptable threats and press for a reduction in tension throughout the region. »
Another measure is also being debated in Brussels: the inclusion of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the European list of terrorist organizations. In 2019, Donald Trump placed it on the US list of terrorist entities. At the beginning of 2023, the European Parliament requested it, but the Member States did not do so.
The designation of this group as a terrorist entity by the EU “would be subject to “reinforced measures regarding police and judicial cooperation in criminal cases”” AND “it would subject all funds held by the group in Europe to an asset freeze”says the American jurist Matthew Levitt, in a study published by the Washington Institute. “Until now, this has been delayed only due to appeasement policies and illegitimate political considerations, which have done nothing but encourage the Iranian regime to continue its destructive policies and even introduce terrorism into the heart of Europe.estimates Shahin Gobadi.
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