The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, explained, on Thursday 14 September, in a speech at the presentation of the ‘M100 Media Award 2023’ to the Iranian movement Woman, Life, Freedom, that the EU would continue to sanction the Iranian regime a s long as human rights violations continued (see other article).
“We must hold those who violate the most basic fundamental rights to account. (...) We will not reduce the pressure until the Iranian regime ends its violence against peaceful protests, stops the arbitrary detentions, overturns the death sentences and releases all those being unjustly detained”, she promised.
To date, the EU has sanctioned 204 individuals and 34 entities responsible for the repression of demonstrations. It has also banned the export of technologies that could be used to monitor and oppress the Iranian people.
Ms von der Leyen recalled that, since September 2022, the regime had imprisoned more than 20,000 peaceful demonstrators, that more than 500 had been killed by the security forces and that more than 100 defendants were at risk of execution. “Their so-called ‘crime’ is the dream of a better future”, she denounced, adding that what was happening in Iran was “something historic”. According to her, the “Woman, Life, Freedom movement has already changed Iran. There is no turning back”.
The President of the European Commission also said that Iran’s stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine would “decisively” shape the country’s future relations with the EU. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)