Iran
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani speaks in Tehran, Iran on August 11, 2022. Photo: Iranian Foreign Ministry/AP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran warned Germany on Sunday against expressing support for the European Union (EU) sanctions imposed on Tehran, accusing them of interfering and acting undiplomatically towards the Islamic Republic.
"Unfortunately, some so-called advocates of human rights have forgotten their dark record of supporting the Saddam regime against the great Iranian people," Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, told reporters during his weekly press conference, referring to German support for the former Iraqi Baathist regime during the Iraq-Iran war in the 1980s.
Kanaani accused Germany of sheltering opposition groups to the Islamic republic and further blasted Berlin for having "politicized the issue of human rights" while claiming the contrary for Tehran.
“Islamic Republic of Iran follows the human rights basis which includes respect for the people, fight against the oppression and defense for the oppressed, and this is while Germany runs away from its international responsibility for respecting countries’ national sovereignty,” Kanaani stated.
He added that German officials must cooperate in building confidence and respecting Tehran’s interests, urging Berlin to “bring rationality back” to prevent relations from further deteriorating.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced the EUs new sanctions against Tehran on Saturday, amid increasing pressure on the Islamic republic’s political leaders.
We must pay heed and take action when human rights are violated. We are witnessing the Iranians’ brave fight for greater freedom and justice, and the brutal violence against them. Sanctions are one way in which we are stepping up the pressure on the regime. #Kanzlerkompakt #Iran pic.twitter.com/jhtXm9JA05
— Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz (@Bundeskanzler) November 12, 2022
The German chancellor added that Iran will receive additional sanctions for providing Russia with drones to attack Ukrainian cities, which he said had inflicted casualties and was unacceptable.
The EU last month also approved a new set of sanctions over Iranian-made drones used by Russia in its war in Ukraine.
Kyiv has downgraded diplomatic ties with Tehran, while the US and the European Union have slammed sanctions on Iranian officials and entities over the drone sale.
The latest wave of sanctions and condemnation comes at a time of increasing tension between the West and Iran over the violent crackdown by Iranian authorities on its domestic protest movement, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa (Zhina) Amini while in police custody. Iran has accused the US and Israel of being behind the almost nine weeks of protests.
Hundreds of thousands of people in Germany with Iranian roots fear for their relatives and are "appalled and disgusted by what the Mullah regime is doing to the demonstrators," the chancellor continued. "It is clear that the Iranian government is solely responsible for this spate of violence."
In Berlin last month, over 80,000 people joined a rally in solidarity with women-led protests in Iran sparked by the death of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini in police custody in September, chanting “Women, Life, Freedom", and some waving Kurdish flags.
Iran Human Rights on Saturday raised the latest death toll of the protests to 326 people, including 43 children.
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