Iran's Foreign Ministry Responds to EU Sanctions: Threatens 'Reciprocal Action'

One day after Denmark announced new EU sanctions against an Iranian intelligence entity and two Iranian individuals, the spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry threatened the EU with 'reciprocal action.' In this context, according to the official news agency IRNA, on Wednesday, January 9, 'an informed diplomatic source' from Iran stated that following this new development, 'the Islamic Republic of Iran is reconsidering its intelligence and security cooperation with these countries [EU member states] and will soon make important decisions in this regard.' On Tuesday, Anders Samuelsen, Denmark's Foreign Minister, announced that the EU had agreed to impose sanctions on one of Iran's intelligence entities due to 'planning assassinations on European soil.' He referred to accusations made by Denmark on October 30 against Iran's Ministry of Intelligence, claiming that the ministry was attempting to assassinate members of the 'Ahvaz Movement' in Denmark. Hours later, Stef Blok, the Dutch Foreign Minister, also stated that the Iranian government was involved in planning two assassinations in the Netherlands that had previously led to sanctions against Iran. The first assassination mentioned by Blok involved Ali Motamed, also known as Mohammad Reza Kolahi Samadi, a member of the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization and the main perpetrator of the explosion at the Islamic Republic Party building, who was shot dead on December 15, 2015, in Almere, Netherlands. The second case involves an Iranian citizen named Ahmad Mola Abunahad, known as Ahmad Nissi, the founder of the 'Ahvaz Liberation Movement,' who was murdered on November 8, last year, in front of his residence in The Hague. Following the EU's decision to sanction Iran over these accusations, informed sources within the EU told Radio Farda on Tuesday that the union had sanctioned the Internal Security Office of Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and two individuals named 'Saeed Hashemi Moghadam and Assadollah Assadi.' Assadollah Assadi is an Iranian diplomat who was arrested in Germany in July this year on charges of attempting to bomb a Mujahedin-e Khalq meeting in Paris. Saeed Hashemi Moghadam is also the Deputy Minister of Intelligence in Iran, accused of ordering the bombing at an opposition gathering on the outskirts of Paris. After the announcement of the new EU sanctions, hours later, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, reacted to the news, accusing several European countries of sheltering what he termed 'terrorist groups' and stated that they could not evade responsibility for that. The following day, Bahram Qasemi, the spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, described the EU's decision as 'illogical and surprising' and 'based on unfounded accusations,' stating: 'The Islamic Republic of Iran will take appropriate measures in response to this action and within the framework of reciprocal action.' According to IRNA, he further stated: 'Instead of listing terrorist and criminal groups such as the Mojahedin and Ahvazis in their sanctions list, the EU has allowed them to operate freely in their inhumane and terrorist activities and even supports them; yet, it accuses the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has been a flagbearer in the fight against terrorism in the region and to which Europe owes its security.' Meanwhile, 'an informed diplomatic source' told IRNA that 'due to the support of European countries for known terrorist groups and the continued sheltering of terrorist elements, the Islamic Republic is evaluating and reconsidering its intelligence, security, and law enforcement cooperation with European countries, and soon decisions will be made in this regard that will cover significant areas.' According to this report, this 'informed source,' whose name was not mentioned, told reporters: 'Following the EU's action in sanctioning one entity and two Iranian individuals, six European ambassadors and chargés d'affaires attempted to justify the union's positions during their visit to the Foreign Ministry but faced a harsh response from the official they met, and due to the unacceptable nature of their statements and the use of inappropriate language, the meeting was concluded in less than ten minutes.' The news of Iran's potential reconsideration of its cooperation with the EU comes as the EU has been trying to mitigate the impact of sanctions against Iran by creating new financial channels following the US withdrawal from the JCPOA and has been cooperating with the Islamic Republic in these areas. In this context, the Danish Foreign Minister stated on Tuesday that this new sanction would not affect the EU's support for the JCPOA.