20 January 2023•Update: 20 January 2023
BERLIN
Germany's Foreign Ministry said on Friday it had not ruled out the idea that the European Union designate Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) a terrorist organization, but pointed to legal obstacles in that process.
“It is our position – and our foreign minister has already emphasized that several times – that we consider such a listing to make sense politically,” ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told a weekly press briefing in Berlin.
“However, we have always pointed out that such an EU terror listing is not only subject to political, but also high legal hurdles,” he added.
Burger’s remarks come only a day after the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling on the European Union to blacklist the guard corps and sanction Iran’s leadership.
The German official vowed “to step up the political pressure on the Iranian regime.”
Relations between Berlin and Tehran have deteriorated in recent months as efforts to revive nuclear talks, which Germany is party to, have stalled.
Tehran has detained several German nationals, while Berlin has strongly condemned the deadly crackdown on anti-regime protests in Iran.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said earlier this month that a new round of sanctions against Iran would not be enough.
"Listing the Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization is politically important and makes sense," she said on Twitter, adding that legal hurdles still need to be removed before it can be done.
EU foreign ministers are expected to meet in Brussels on Monday to approve further sanctions on Tehran.
