Josep Borrell: The detention of European citizens by the Islamic Republic is concerning
Coinciding with the announcement of the fifth sanctions package against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the European Union’s foreign policy chief on Monday, February 20, issued a statement strongly criticizing Tehran for the arbitrary detention of the union’s citizens.
In Josep Borrell’s statement, it is noted that the European Union strongly opposes the arbitrary detentions of its citizens and dual Iranian-European nationals by the Iranian government and calls on the country to end the distressing detention of foreign nationals for political exploitation.
The statement adds that the increasing number of European Union citizens currently detained on baseless charges in the prisons of the Islamic Republic is a matter of great concern. Many of these individuals are held in degrading conditions without any chance for a fair trial.
According to this senior EU diplomat, the European Union calls on Iran to seriously adhere to its international obligations under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and Political Relations, as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.