No future for Iran without the NCRI

Washington, Amsterdam or here in Berlin - exiled Iranians support the role of the NCRI. Foto: private

(KL) – Several Western politicians are warning against regime change in Iran by military means. This could trigger a reaction of resilience in a population that has been confronted with “the US is the devil” propaganda for more than 40 years. At a time when hardly anyone knows how to behave “correctly” anymore, it is time to support the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) with all our might. The 10-point plan for a peaceful transition to democracy presented by the NCRI could be Iran’s only chance to achieve this transition without bloodshed.

Immediately after the American attacks on nuclear facilities in Iran, we received a statement from the elected president of the NCRI, Maryam Rajavi: “Khamenei must go now. The Iranian people wants an end to the war and is striving for peace and freedom. Khomeini is responsible for an unpatriotic project that has not only cost countless Iranians their lives, but also cost Iran at least $2 trillion – which is now going up in smoke. There is a third option: no appeasement, no war, but regime change, which means that the Iranian people and the Iranian resistance will abolish the religious dictatorship. Let us fight for a free and democratic Iran, a non-nuclear republic where state and religion are separate and gender equality prevails.”

As has been the case so often in recent weeks, this weekend saw large demonstrations by exiled Iranians and their supporters in Washington, Berlin, and Amsterdam. The NCRI’s 10-point plan is seen here as the only sensible solution to the current situation, but the NCRI cannot do it alone. At a time when there are calls from all sides for the US, Israel, and Iran to sit down at the negotiating table, the West must insist that the NCRI be included as an equal partner. The fact that Iran is currently still refusing to come to the negotiating table as long as the country’s nuclear facilities are being bombed, is another mistake on the part of the mullahs, who apparently have not yet understood that their theocratic dictatorship is coming to an end. Here, the US and Israel must insist that negotiations can only take place with the participation of the NCRI.

But until negotiations can even begin, the war continues to escalate, with geopolitical implications that no one can yet foresee. All major nations are affected by this war, and all have their own interests that they want to see defended in this war.

It is well known that the West wants to do everything in its power to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. It is also clear that Iran’s partners, China and Russia, are very reluctant to see the collapse of the mullah regime. But the escalation must be stopped; the civilian casualties of the attacks are too numerous.

Militarily, we have a situation comparable to that in Ukraine – militarily, no one can “win” this conflict without destroying entire regions. Politically, negotiations must now take place so that the killing can be stopped, ideally before disturbed elements of the French extreme left wing parties come up with the idea of venerating the mullah regime as a champion of women’s rights.

Maryam Rajavi is absolutely right – the great Iranian people, who can look back on thousands of years of high civilization, must now regain their freedom, the murderous mullah regime must be ended, and Khamenei would do well to flee to Russia, where deposed despots from the Middle East apparently like to seek refuge.

Now it is up to the US, Israel, and the Europeans to position the NCRI in such a way that Iran’s future is organized according to the 10-point plan. There must be no military coup, no foreign troops may invade Iran, and the bombings must stop the very moment the mullahs abdicate. A future for Iran without the NCRI seems difficult to organize; the alternative would be further escalation and thus the next step toward World War III.