Pahlavi on Europe’s Iran appeasement: Do Iranian human rights matter less?

Iran’s exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi told Sweden’s parliament on Monday that Iran’s future would ultimately be decided by its people, not by foreign forces.

“The battle in my country today is not between reformists and hardliners; It is between occupation and liberation; It is a battle for the soul of a nation. What we are witnessing is not a fleeting protest movement; It is a generational revolt, the most profound uprising in Iran since 1979,” he said.

Pahlavi said the war that mattered was the Islamic Republic’s war against the Iranian people, adding that it had intensified every day and that no ceasefire had taken hold in that conflict.

He said the Islamic Republic had never acted like a normal government since its founding and had projected influence through forces from Beirut to Baghdad and Sanaa.

Referring to internet shutdowns in Iran, he said the authorities had silenced dissenting voices, cut internet access and opened fire on unarmed people, adding that the cost of the crackdown had been catastrophic.

France will soon organize a conference with Britain to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday.

Macron said the meeting would include countries willing to join a peaceful multinational mission aimed at securing the waterway.

“This strictly defensive mission, which will be separate from the warring parties, is intended to be deployed as soon as the situation allows,” he said in a post on X.

A senior Iranian lawmaker said on Monday that Tehran had agreed to dilute 450 kilograms of enriched uranium as a goodwill measure, but the United States later backed out of the arrangement.

Ali Nikzad, deputy speaker of parliament, said a consortium was supposed to be formed inside Iran to dilute the uranium with the participation of the United States and Saudi Arabia.

He also said the United States had proposed creating a legal regime for the Strait of Hormuz that would include an American role.

“You have no business in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf,” he said, referring to the United States.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Monday that the United States and Iran were sincere about a ceasefire and understood the need to maintain it.

Fidan said he saw no obstacle to reopening the Strait of Hormuz through negotiations, but warned questions remained over potential new regulations.

He added that there were many difficulties in forming an international force in the Strait of Hormuz and that the waterway should be reopened through diplomacy.

Australia’s navy would be ready to contribute to an international effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the government decided to assist, the country’s new defense chief said on Monday.

Mark Hammond said the force remained prepared for such a mission, but no request had been made.

“The navy is ready as it ever has been,” he said. “The question of a contribution is one consideration by the Australian government, should they receive a request. And there’s been no such request.”