Briefings
Europe and the Iranian crisis
On Presseurop
-
Iran: Not just a physical gulf
26 June 20091 ABC Madrid -
Iranian Elections: Nokia-Siemens accused in censorship row
24 June 2009PresseuropFrankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung -
Media: This is Radio Free Iran
23 June 2009Die Welt Berlin -
Iran: Come the hour, come the Mujahideen
22 June 2009Rue89 Paris -
International: What's the deal with Iran?
18 June 20091 Presseurop
For several years now the EU has sought to negotiate between Tehran and the West. But the Iranian regime’s current crackdown shows the limitations of this soft-diplomacy approach and belies all hope of democratic change in view of the deep divide between political cultures. 
While the regime in Teheran cracks down on national media, Iranians broadcasting from abroad become increasingly important. In Prague, Radio Farda is reporting on events in Iran on a daily basis despite attempts to silence it. 
At an unlikely political gathering on the outskirts of Paris that smacks of a giant village fair, the People’s Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI), opposed to the Tehran regime, have made a bid to co-opt the current uprising in Iran. This Saturday afternoon thousands of people from all over Europe gathered to acclaim the leader-in-exile of the “National Council of Resistance of Iran” (NCRI), Maryam Rajavi. 
Even after a week of protests disputing incumbent President Ahmadinejad’s landslide victory in the Iranian election, the EU still keeps a low diplomatic profile. Several newspapers across the continent are suggesting that this might have something to do with European economic interests in the Islamic republic. 