UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has warned that regime change in Iran could produce outcomes “as bad or worse,” saying there is no guarantee that any successor to the Revolutionary Guards would be an improvement.
“There are lots of people in Iran who would like regime change,” Lammy told The Guardian, in an interview published on Saturday. “But there are no guarantees that what would replace the current Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps would not be as bad or worse.”
“The US decision to bomb was not to topple Iran’s government,” he added.
Lammy emphasized that the decision over Iran’s political future “is for the Iranian people to determine,” and that his focus remains on preventing Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.
Nuclear concerns remain central
Lammy also said Iran has failed to justify its production of uranium enriched to 60% purity, a level far beyond what’s needed for civilian energy.
“Its leaders cannot explain to me, and I’ve had many conversations with them, why they need 60% enriched uranium,” he said, pointing out that enrichment in UK sites like Sellafield and Urenco does not exceed 6%.
He warned of a broader risk to the region: “We would be very suddenly handing over to our children and grandchildren a world that had many more nuclear weapons in it than it has today.”
Tehran denies talks aim at a deal
Lammy’s comments come amid renewed, but limited, diplomatic contacts between Iran and the so-called E3 — Britain, France and Germany. Tehran insists these are not formal negotiations.
“There are no talks aimed at reaching a deal with Europe at the moment,” Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani told Russia’s Sputnik news agency. “These are exchanges of opinion.”
The discussions follow last week's meeting in Istanbul, the first such engagement since Israeli and US strikes on Iranian territory in June.
NPT threat underscores tensions
Iran International earlier this week reported that Tehran has warned it may withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if the E3 moves to trigger snapback UN sanctions under Security Council Resolution 2231.
Tehran rejects the legal basis of such a move and accuses European states of aligning themselves with US and Israeli military actions.
Iran says diplomacy backed by Supreme Leader
A senior Iranian lawmaker said on Saturday that the recent talks have full backing from the country’s top leadership.
“What is happening now is certainly the decision of the ruling system,” said Abbas Golroo, a senior lawmaker and member of the national security and foreign policy committee. He called the decision to engage diplomatically “the right one.”
Golroo said talks could help reduce threats and stressed the need to keep close ties with Russia and China. “Our backing must allow the team to protect national interests and manage challenges in these delicate conditions,” he said.
