Pompeo: US Pressure is Not for Regime Change in Iran

Mike Pompeo, the US Secretary of State, stated that the Trump administration's pressure is not aimed at regime change in Iran but rather to align with a "global consensus" on how to compel Tehran to "act like a normal country." During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Thursday, June 3, he criticized European countries for doing "nothing" to counter Iran's ballistic missile programs. Pompeo emphasized that the Trump administration is determined to impose severe sanctions on Tehran for "misusing its resources" and that "the groundwork for this is fully prepared." When asked if the US government is seeking "regime change in Iran," Pompeo responded negatively. Iranian officials have repeatedly accused the US government of attempting to "overthrow the regime." Most recently, on Wednesday, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, reiterated this claim, stating that the term "overthrow" is not new in the discourse of American officials and has been used since the beginning of the Islamic government in Iran. On May 8, Donald Trump announced the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement with Iran, emphasizing that the Islamic Republic continued to expand its ballistic missile program and "support for terrorism" in the region after the JCPOA. Pompeo also criticized European countries during his Senate committee session for not taking any action against Iran's ballistic missile programs, stating that for the past three years, "Europeans have told us they were preparing to counter the missiles, but they did nothing." He also mentioned that "Europe talks about its agreement on counter-terrorism programs" but that European governments did nothing to support the US in "designating Iran as the world's leading sponsor of terrorism." Iran denies the accusation of "supporting terrorism," and the Supreme Leader has stated that Europe "must guarantee" that it will not discuss missile programs and Iran's actions in the region during negotiations related to the continuation of the JCPOA. Before announcing the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement, Trump referred to it as "the worst deal in history," pointing out three major flaws: the "sunset clause," Iran's ballistic programs, and the Islamic Republic's "destabilizing actions" in regional countries. According to reports from European and American diplomatic sources, three European countries had made progress in their negotiations with the Trump administration last month, but shortly after, "Donald Trump announced that he was withdrawing from the agreement." Pompeo rejected this claim during Thursday's session, stating, "We could never have gotten there." The US Secretary of State had stated a day earlier, on Wednesday, in a House Foreign Affairs Committee meeting that Washington would hold discussions with its allies, including European countries, in the coming weeks to review "next steps to counter Iran's nuclear programs." Although the three European countries, France, Britain, and Germany, have expressed concern over Iran's missile activities and actions in the region, they have emphasized the preservation of the JCPOA, many large European companies have stated that they are unwilling to continue their economic cooperation with Iran due to fears of US sanctions against Tehran.