US President Donald Trump has openly admitted the possibility of regime change in Iran. He supported the idea by saying that "this seems like the best thing that can happen", BTA reported.
Against this backdrop, Washington continues negotiations with Tehran and at the same time strengthens its military presence in the region, including by sending a new aircraft carrier.
"This seems like the best thing that can happen", the American leader told reporters at the Fort Bragg military base, North Carolina, in response to a journalistic question about the likelihood of "regime change" in Iran. "For 47 years, they have been talking and talking. And while they are talking, we have lost a lot of lives."
Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last Iranian shah, has called on his compatriots to hold new protests to coincide with planned demonstrations abroad against the government in Tehran today. At the end of last year and in January, the Islamic Republic was gripped by a wave of mass demonstrations that the authorities violently suppressed.
The US president threatened military intervention in Iran in response to the repression, which according to non-governmental organizations has claimed thousands of victims among the protesters.
He subsequently continued to threaten Tehran with the aim of forcing the ayatollahs' regime to conclude an agreement, especially on the issue of the nuclear program.
Negotiations between the two warring parties resumed on February 6 in Oman, but whether they will continue seems unclear given the widely divergent positions. US ally Israel is lobbying Washington to also demand a restriction on Iran's ballistic missile program and an end to support for armed groups in the region.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has received an invitation to the first meeting of the Gaza Peace Council, but she is not expected to participate for now, according to a regular Commission briefing, BNR reported.
European External Action Service spokesman Anwar El Announi confirmed the invitation. The Council will meet on February 19 in Washington. However, Ursula von der Leyen's schedule for next week does not include a trip to the US.
„Our position remains unchanged and has been clear from the very beginning. We have a number of questions on a number of elements in the Council's charter, related to its scope, governance and compatibility with the UN Charter.“, said spokesman El Announi.
The only two EU member states currently participating in the Peace Council are Bulgaria and Hungary. It was created by current US President Donald Trump.