European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in Berlin, Germany, on Monday that it was too early to drop Iran sanctions, citing Tehran’s suppression of its own population. “We think the dropping of sanctions would be too early,” von der Leyen said at a meeting of Germany’s conservative Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union.
Von der Leyen said sanctions were imposed over Iran’s domestic repression and that the European Union first needed to see “a fundamental change in Iran” before any relief. Her comments came as Iran pursued regional diplomacy amid a fragile ceasefire in the conflict, including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s visit to Russia.
The EU position remains tied to human rights, regional de-escalation, nuclear activity and ballistic missile concerns.
EU human rights sanctions against Iran include asset freezes, travel bans and restrictions on the export of equipment that could be used for internal repression or telecommunications monitoring.
Read: Iran Air has been cleared to fly in the EU
The European Union has maintained a separate sanctions framework linked to Iran’s military support for Russia’s war in Ukraine and later broadened it to include Iran’s support for armed groups in the Middle East and the Red Sea region.
