Iran Novin Party: The Revolutionary Guards Are Not an Institution of a Nation-State, But a 'Terrorist' Group

The conference titled 'The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is not an institution of a nation-state, but a terrorist organization' was held on Thursday, April 5, in collaboration with the Iran Novin Party and several European parties at the European Parliament in Brussels. The Iran Novin Party exposed the destructive role of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) with the presentation of a document at this conference. Hamid Sheibani Rad, the Secretary-General and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Iran Novin Party, stated in an exclusive interview with the Persian section of Voice of America about this document: 'This document attempts to provide arguments to Western politicians on why the IRGC is not even related to the Islamic Republic, but rather a force that seeks to spread the Islamic Revolution worldwide, and we even see the image of the globe in the IRGC's logo.' He also mentioned that the document aims to clarify, using a collection of statements from IRGC officials and based on the Constitution of the Islamic Republic, that this group is not an institution of a nation-state but a terrorist group. Charlie Weimers, a Member of the European Parliament from Sweden, in his speech at the conference, listed some of the most significant crimes committed by the IRGC both inside and outside Iran, calling this organization a safe haven for financing terrorist groups. He praised the widespread struggles of the Iranian people against the oppressors of the IRGC and the Islamic Republic regime and strongly criticized the policies of European politicians in confronting the Islamic Republic regime, urging them to stand against these crimes. Weimers described this conference in an exclusive interview with the Persian section of Voice of America as a strong message to the Islamic Republic, stating that 'the European Union is changing its policy and will no longer have a friendly approach but a strict one.' He said that regional stability depends on ending the terrorist activities of the IRGC throughout the Middle East, and achieving this goal requires more economic and financial pressure on the Iranian government. In addition to Hamid Sheibani Rad and Charlie Weimers, Ervand Khushnood and Arvin Khushnood, experts on Iranian issues, also spoke. Arvin Khushnood emphasized in an interview with Voice of America the role of Prince Reza Pahlavi in creating a rift and separation between the armed forces of the Islamic Republic and the IRGC: 'The only one who can envision a future for Iran and guarantee it is the Shah of Iran, and therefore we have no one else who can separate the armed forces from the IRGC.' The United States has classified the IRGC as a terrorist organization. Political and civil activists in Iran are striving to have this group listed as a terrorist organization by the European Union as well.