On Thursday, October 28, supporters of the People's Mujahidin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) held a large conference in Washington DC. The conference, titled, "2021 Free Iran Summit: Holding Ebrahim Raisi Accountable for Crimes Against Humanity, Genocide, Regional Meddling, and Nuclear Defiance,"

This conference, however, was significantly different from similar meetings that were previously held in the United States. In this ever-important gathering, in addition to distinguished American personalities such as Senator Joe Lieberman, US Vice President candidate (2000), Senator Torricelli, U.S. Senator (1997-2003), Honorable Judge Michael Mukasey, 81st U.S. Attorney General, General James Conway, the former commander of the US Marine Marines, etc., who have already attended such meetings many times in the past and expressed their support for the MEK and the NCRI. The presence of former Vice President Mike Pence, at the meeting, magnified the importance of this conference.
In his speech, Vice-President Mike Pence, who has rarely appeared in public since the November election, stated that he was attending the meeting as his first opportunity after leaving office to talk in detail about Iran.

He mentioned that although he was no longer talking as part of the U.S. government, he assured the audience that he was expressing the views and longings of the tens of millions of Americans who strongly support the establishment of a democratic republic, based on the separation of religion and state in Iran. He continued his speech by condemning Ebrahim Raisi and calling for his trial for crimes against humanity and for the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in 1988, saying that the election of Ebrahim Raisi as president of the Iranian regime was a sign that the regime is in a state of desperation and weakness.

All indications are that the authoritarian regime in Iran knows that the days of its life are numbered, but one of the great lies that the mullahs are trying to convince the world is that there is no alternative to them, and therefore the current situation must be accepted. In response, Vice-President Mike Pence mentioned that on the contrary, there is an alternative, and it is well organized and well-prepared.

This alternative has all the competencies and enjoys the support of the Iranian people. The name of this alternative is MEK, meaning the People's Mujahedin Organization of Iran. Pence said the organization is committed to freedom and human rights for all Iranians and is led by a great woman named Maryam Rajavi, who inspires the world. Her ten-point plan for Iran's future guarantees freedom of expression.

It also establishes freedom of assembly and freedom for all Iranians to elect their own leaders and coexist peacefully with all independent countries in the region.

It seems that Mike Pence's full support for the Iranian people's quest for freedom and democracy, led by the People's Mujahedin of Iran and Maryam Rajavi, reflects a profound understanding and recognition of the vulnerability and unpopularity of the regime in Tehran, on the one hand, and the presence and existence of a viable alternative to the mullahs' regime, on the other hand, among the politician and media in the United States.

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It is worth mentioning that last July, the former secretary of state Mike Pompeo, participated in an online conference and spoke at a three-day meeting organized by pro-resistance Iranian American communities in the US. In his speech, Secretary Pompeo also expressed his support for the resistance of the Iranian people and pointed out that the time for the possible establishment of another monarchy in Iran is over.

Prior to Secretary Pompeo's speech at the online conference, dozens of senators and members of Congress from both political parties in America, as well as a large number of American generals, expressed their full support for the establishment of a democratic republic led under Ms. Maryam Rajavi’s leadership.

In Iran, however, the reaction of the regime media to Vice-president Pence's speech was very hostile, as expected. Almost all the regime’s media covered this meeting and Mike Pence’s presence and his support of MEK and Ms. Rajavi and their opposition to the JCPOA agreement employing, of course, using their own language and culture! Because, on one hand, they do not want to spoil the morale of their precarious forces by publishing such news of their dire situation, and on the other hand, they are worried that under the pressure of the opposers of JCPOA, such as Pence and Pompeo, the US government and the British, France And Germany, that want to continue negotiations and reach a new agreement, conclude that negotiations are useless and a waste of time and only buys time for the Iranian regime to advance its nuclear program to acquire a bomb, and consequently start an alternative plan B.

That is, to refer Iran's nuclear case to the UN Security Council, re-imposing all UN sanctions, and implementing chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which authorizes military operations against the regime's nuclear facilities, which will certainly accelerate the overthrow of the mullahs' regime.

by: Cyrus Yaqubi

Cyrus Yaqubi is a Research Analyst and Iranian Foreign Affairs Commentator investigating the social issues and economy of the Middle East countries in general and Iran in particular.