Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday summoned Germany’s ambassador to Tehran, Axel Dittmann, to protest what it called “interventionist and offensive” remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The move came after Merz said at a press conference in Berlin alongside Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan that Iran’s leadership lacks legitimacy and is nearing collapse.
“A regime that can only hold onto power through sheer violence and terror against its own population: its days are numbered,” Merz said.
“It could be a matter of weeks, but this regime has no legitimacy to govern the country,” he added.
His comments came amid renewed threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to consider military action against Iran.
According to Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA, Alireza Yousefi, director general for Western Europe at the Foreign Ministry, formally conveyed Tehran’s protest to the German envoy during the meeting.
Iranian officials cited Germany’s historical role during the 1980s Iran–Iraq war, including alleged support for Baghdad, as well as Berlin’s failure to pursue accountability over the use of chemical weapons, IRNA reported.
Yousefi also criticised Germany’s position on the Israel-Palestine conflict and recent statements by German officials concerning last June’s 12-day confrontation between Iran and Israel, arguing that Berlin lacked moral authority to comment on Iran’s domestic affairs.
Relations between Iran and several European countries have deteriorated in recent weeks following protests inside Iran, which European leaders have condemned over the treatment of demonstrators.
Earlier on Thursday, the European Union formally designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation, a decision strongly rejected by Tehran.
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Right-wing Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro will face leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a runoff of the presidential election later this month, after he exceeded expectations in Sunday's first-round vote with a slight lead over the incumbent.
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Regional powers gathered in Moscow on Monday for talks on Afghanistan, focusing on security, economic cooperation and Kabul’s relations with its neighbours.
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