By C. R.
This year’s Free Iran Summit was also attended by Janez Janša, who addressed the participants via a screen. He called on the West to support the Iranian opposition, which he said was “committed to democracy”.
Janša was also critical of Belgium’s prisoner swap deal with Iran. He stressed that such deals will only encourage terrorist acts by Iranians. He also pointed out that Iranians deserve democracy and a free life.
The full speech by Janez Janša at the summit is published below.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
Dear President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi; dear participants of the Free Iran World Summit; dear friends.
I regret for not being able to address you in person. But, let me first of all emphasize that my message today to you is a message to the Iranian people.
We believe there is a democratic alternative to the mullahs, and the West should therefore support the organized opposition, one that is powerful and committed to democracy. Inside Iran, it exists in the form of the MEK’s Resistance Units, and abroad, it exists in the form of the National Council of Resistance of Iran.
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi has guaranteed all democratic values in her 10-point plan for a future free Iran. That plan underscores the need for a secular, non-nuclear, and democratically elected republic that rejects both the Shah and the mullahs. It seeks to set up a pluralistic society that respects women’s rights, minority rights, rule of law, and peaceful foreign policy. That is precisely what Iran and the world need in order to avoid the nuclear and terrorism nightmare of the mullahs’ regime.
It’s high time that Western governments should recognize these acts of bravery and the right of the Iranian people to live in freedom.
So, we are strongly against the latest instance of appeasement by Belgium. This shameful so-called treaty signed with the Iranian regime is allowing it to free the regime’s convicted diplomat-terrorist Assadollah Assadi.
This Belgian proposal will only embolden and encourage Tehran’s agents to conduct more acts of terrorism and violence, both against the Iranian people and the international community, including in European capitals.
Brutal Russian aggression on Ukraine, triggered by Putin, the closest ally of the mullahs, should teach us that the era of appeasement is over.
Let me conclude by saying what I have said many times before. The Iranian people deserve democracy, freedom, and human rights, and should be firmly supported by the international community. The Iranian regime must be held accountable for human rights violations, and the international community must be firm on this.
Dear friends, you can always count on my understanding and support. Thank you for your attention.