Iran considers EU armies ‘terrorist groups’ after IRGC designation

Iran will treat the armies of European Union member states as “terrorist groups” in retaliation for the EU’s decision to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation, parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on Sunday.

Speaking during a parliamentary session in Tehran, Qalibaf said the move was based on Article 7 of Iran’s Law on Countermeasures Against the Declaration of the IRGC as a Terrorist Organisation, adding that Europe had taken an “irresponsible action” that ran counter to its own interests.

“By trying to target the Revolutionary Guards, the Europeans have once again acted against the interests of their own people by blindly obeying the Americans,” he said.

Lawmakers attending the session wore green IRGC uniforms in a show of solidarity and chanted anti-U.S., anti-Israel and anti-Europe slogans, according to Iranian state television footage.

EU designation and IRGC role

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was established after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution and serves as the ideological backbone of the country’s military, tasked with protecting the Islamic system from internal and external threats. The force also wields significant influence across Iran’s economy and security institutions.

The European Union agreed on Thursday to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organisation, citing Tehran’s response to recent nationwide protests and broader concerns over human rights. The step mirrors similar designations already made by the United States, Canada and Australia.

Qalibaf said Iran’s national security parliamentary commission would consider expelling EU military attaches and pursue further retaliatory measures through the foreign ministry. It remains unclear what immediate practical impact Iran’s declaration will have.

• EU lists Iran’s IRGC as terrorist group as protest death toll rises above 6,100

Rising tensions and mixed signals

The announcement comes amid heightened rhetoric between Tehran and Washington. U.S. President Donald Trump has warned of possible military action and recently ordered a major naval deployment toward the region, while also saying Iran is “talking to us” and that diplomacy remains possible.

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Iranian officials have likewise insisted they are open to dialogue. Ali Larijani, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said on Saturday that “structural arrangements for negotiations are progressing,” despite what he described as a media-driven atmosphere of confrontation.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has also sought to lower the temperature, saying a new war would be in the interests of neither Iran, the United States nor the wider Middle East. In a phone call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Pezeshkian said Tehran has never sought war and remains committed to preventing further regional destabilisation.

Protests and domestic backdrop

Western governments accuse the IRGC of playing a central role in suppressing the protest movement that erupted over economic hardship and political grievances, with rights groups reporting thousands of deaths. Tehran rejects those claims, blaming the unrest on “terrorist acts” encouraged by foreign powers.

Qalibaf said the EU decision had only strengthened domestic support for the Guards and, in his words, pushed Europe closer to “irrelevance in the future world order”.

The exchange of designations underscores a sharp deterioration in Iran–EU relations, even as regional and international actors continue to press both Tehran and Washington to keep diplomatic channels open.

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