The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, has said in an interview with leading German weekly Der Spiegel that "violence against peaceful protesters is always unacceptable". The former Spanish foreign minister made the comment in reference to the anti-government protests currently taking place in Iran.
Despite the police crackdown on protest, Borrell does not support imposing more sanctions on Iran, a move which, in fact, has already been made by US president Donald Trump. "Iran is not the only place in the world where people protest against the government. That's why I don't want to talk about more sanctions," said the EU commissioner.
In his interview, Borrell, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security, also opted to "defend the interests of Europe more strongly". In that respect, Borrell reiterated the phrase he used this week at the European Parliament: Europe must speak "the language of power".
Josep Borrell began his new role on the European Commission in late 2019 after a 16-month stint as Spain's foreign minister, a period dominated by his efforts to muffle the voice of the Catalan independence movement at international level.