Canada FM Anand says ‘regime change’ in Iran would be required for restarting diplomatic ties

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says Canada will not re-establish ties with Iran until “regime change” takes place in Tehran.

Anand made the comment to The Globe and Mail Saturday, and her office and department would not repeat that phrasing but has not disputed it.

“We will not open diplomatic relationships with Iran unless there is a regime change. Period,” the newspaper quoted Anand as saying.

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Global Affairs Canada would not provide the context of those remarks, instead writing that Ottawa will not restore diplomatic ties it severed in 2012 “so long as the Iranian government continues to brutalize its people and deny their legitimate aspirations.”

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Since late December, a violent crackdown in Iran has killed thousands of protesters across the country. That has prompted large demonstrations in Toronto and for Ottawa to unveil yet another round of sanctions against Iranian officials, marking the 23rd round of Canadian sanctions against Iran since 2022.

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