“European governments and intelligence services know very well that Europe owes its security today to Iran’s efforts,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said Sunday.
“We saw what terrorist and Takfiri outfits did on the streets in Paris and other European capitals and how they caused insecurity and violence,” he said, referring to deadly attacks by Daesh sympathizers.
Qassemi said Daesh and other terrorist groups were nearing their demise thanks to Iran’s struggle.
“Iran has been serious in its fight against terrorism, so much so that today we see terrorists have been purged from most territories in Syria and Iraq,” he said.
“However, we believe despite their decline, terrorism still exists and a serious resolve and a global coalition are required to eradicate them,” he added.
Iran has been actively providing the governments of Iraq and Syria with military advice to push back against foreign-backed militants who have been terrorizing both countries using support from Western countries and their regional allies.
Qassemi said the spread of Daesh and other groups into Europe was in large part due to the European governments' own actions.
“The terrorists were first nurtured, developed and armed in this very region by certain parties and then caused terror and panic in Europe using the funds they had been provided with.”
The spokesman blasted Europe’s double policy in dealing with terrorist groups, something he said had left an adverse effect on their image among their own people.
“Europeans’ instrumental use of terrorism is nothing new and they divide terrorists into good and bad categories,” Qassemi said.
“We believe we should not practice multiple standards in fighting terrorism… and only defend certain groups to serve our own interests,” he added.
The spokesman said Europe‘s double standard was best demonstrated in Syria, where it first supported a terrorist push to topple President Bashar al-Assad but changed its position when it realized its mistake.
Those policies, he said, have encouraged many European citizens to join Daesh without facing serious consequences back home.
Qassemi said all Europe needed to fight terrorism was “determination” because it already has complete knowledge of the terrorist groups’ “nature, action and funding channels.”
Qassemi also referred to Britain’s recent move in blacklisting Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah as a terrorist group as a bare example of European double standards.