Brussels, Belgium – September 24, 2024 – The International Committee in Search of Justice (ISJ), a prominent organization supported by 4,000 lawmakers across both sides of the Atlantic, held a major news conference today in Brussels. The conference unveiled key recommendations for a new European Union (EU) policy towards Iran, emphasizing the need for a decisive shift from the current approach. The ISJ urged the EU to abandon its policy of appeasement and extend support to the organized and legitimate Iranian opposition.
Key speakers included Professor Alejo Vidal-Quadras, President of the ISJ and former Vice President of the European Parliament (1999–2014), Struan Stevenson, former Member of the European Parliament from Scotland, and Paulo Casaca, former Member of the European Parliament from Portugal. The conference introduced the new policy paper, “Europe’s Failed Policy Towards Iran,” which emphasizes the need for a complete overhaul of Europe’s approach to Iran. It points to repeated concessions, including financial aid and political compromises, that have only emboldened Tehran’s regime. The report argues that four decades of appeasement have fostered a culture of impunity, allowing the Iranian regime to continue its domestic atrocities and destabilizing activities across the Middle East.
The paper specifically criticizes four decades of EU “appeasement” toward Tehran, which it says has been marked by turning a blind eye to Iran’s increasing oil exports and capitulating to its hostage-taking tactics. According to the paper, this approach has fostered a culture of impunity, allowing the Iranian regime to continue committing crimes against its own people—including genocide and crimes against humanity—while destabilizing the Middle East without fear of consequences.
International Committee in Search of Justice (ISJ) conference, 24 September 2024, 10:30 AM, CET. The Imperative of a New EU #Iran Policy. https://t.co/HjO80nYFcD
— International Committee in Search of Justice (@isjcommittee) September 23, 2024
Stevenson, who chairs the ISJ Committee on the Protection of Political Freedoms in Iran, spoke on how the regime has systematically targeted the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI-MEK) and the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). “The mullahs have spent millions, if not billions, on demonizing the PMOI and NCRI, spreading lies and propaganda through books, films, and media outlets,” he said. “They have killed over 100,000 PMOI supporters and carried out missile attacks on PMOI members in Iraq. Yet, the regime’s relentless smear campaigns have failed, and we stand with the Iranian people in their fight for a free and democratic Iran.”
During the conference, Professor Vidal-Quadras presented the policy paper and recounted a terrorist attack against him in Madrid last November, from which he narrowly escaped. He emphasized the regime’s terror tactics. “On the 9th of November last year, a hitman hired by the Iranian regime shot me in the face. I miraculously survived. This wasn’t an isolated case; the Iranian ayatollahs have carried out assassinations, kidnappings, and bombings across five continents, many of them in Europe,” he said. Vidal-Quadras urged that the EU must fully acknowledge the failure of its policies toward Iran and implement a decisive shift.
In his remarks, he dismissed the notion that dialogue with Tehran can be productive, stating, “Negotiation and dialogue with this regime are counterproductive. Their perception of Western concessions is that the West is weak and cowardly. The Islamic Republic of Iran is a fanatical, corrupt, and terrorist state that cannot evolve from within.” He criticized European leaders for what he called a “stubborn ignorance” of this reality, citing incidents such as Federica Mogherini’s visit to Tehran and Josep Borrell’s diplomatic overtures to Iran, which only emboldened the regime.
🚨 @isjcommittee is unveiling a new whitepaper on EU policy on Iran today
Former MEPs @VidalQuadras @STRUANSTEVENSON @paulocasaca1 to present policy suggestions to EU leaders
The conference is just about to starthttps://t.co/2dFCVX8Hy5
— International Committee in Search of Justice (@isjcommittee) September 24, 2024
He outlined five core elements that should guide this new strategy:
- International Isolation of the Iranian Regime: All EU embassies in Tehran should be closed, and all Iranian diplomatic personnel expelled from EU territory. Iran’s diplomatic missions in Europe have become centers of espionage and terrorism. Europe should render Iran a pariah state.
- Designation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a Terrorist Organization: The EU should follow the lead of the U.S. and Canada, which have already designated the IRGC as a terrorist group. This move would disrupt the operational capacities of the IRGC, which has been destabilizing the Middle East and providing support to Iranian proxy groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, the Houthis, and Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria.
- Severing the Iranian Regime’s Financial Lifelines: Economic and trade sanctions should be expanded and intensified to weaken Iran’s financial power, thus limiting the regime’s ability to fund its activities.
- Increased Pressure on Iran Over Human Rights Violations: The EU must escalate its pressure on Iran in international forums for its gross violations of human rights, particularly against women and the Iranian people. The regime must be held accountable for its crimes against humanity, as condemned by the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, Javaid Rehman.
- Political Support for the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI): The EU should back the NCRI, the only legitimate Iranian organization capable of leading an orderly transition to democracy. Europe should stand with the Iranian people in their struggle to free themselves from the rule of the Ayatollahs and achieve freedom and democracy.
Iran's "theocratic regime has also spent tens of millions building international ties with influential academics and researchers, penetrating governments, think tanks and advisory groups at the highest level, spreading the regime’s propaganda. Their teams of so-called experts,…
— International Committee in Search of Justice (@isjcommittee) September 24, 2024
Paulo Casaca focused on the wider implications of the regime’s actions and the international community’s failure to respond. Reflecting on the assassination attempt against Vidal-Quadras, Casaca remarked, “The assassination plot against Alejo was designed to exploit the West’s appeasement policies, hoping to stir political mayhem in Europe. But it failed—by a whisker, but it failed! It is time for European authorities to respond appropriately by sanctioning the regime and holding it accountable.”
Casaca criticized Western leaders for failing to see through Tehran’s façade of reformism, stating, “The puppet theatre of reformists versus hardliners has been played countless times over four decades, yet there has been no meaningful change. Every concession made by the West has led to more terrorism and expansionism by the regime.”
The ISJ conference concluded with a clear message: Europe’s failed policy toward Iran must be replaced with a firm, proactive stance that supports the Iranian people’s quest for freedom and democracy. As Vidal-Quadras said, “Nothing is more damaging to the Iranian people than the regime they are enduring, and nothing could be more effective in accelerating its downfall than a united and resolute Europe.”
