General Chuck Wald, former Deputy Commander of U.S. European Command, addressed the first day of the Free Iran World Summit on July 1, 2023.
General Chuck Wald: I look forward to seeing you in Tehran
The full-text speech of General Chuck Wald, follows:
I think almost everything possible about Iran has been said today, so I’m not going to go over all of it. But I will do something a little different. I want to say thank you to a couple of my friends, Alireza Jafarzadeh and Ali Safavi, for all they’ve done over the last 16 years. And I know there are plenty of others just like them here, many of you.
Former Prime Minister of Romania, Prime Minister Roman, said what I believe is the most cogent thing all day. When Ceaușescu was thrown out of Romania, it happened quickly and unpredictably, and immediately the void was filled by people like you who have the same determination. That’s going to happen in Iran, and it may happen pretty quickly.
So, the people I mentioned earlier who I said should be ready today were really smart. Your Excellency, Madam President Rajavi, you need to be ready. It’s coming.
Secondly, I can’t wait to see the looks on the faces of the people in Iran, especially the former regime, when they have a female president in their country. It will be a remarkable moment.
Lastly, I would like to thank some of the people from the delegation from America who have been working tirelessly for years. Senator Lieberman, you’re amazing. Wes Martin, who many of you may not know, but he works diligently every year to get things done.
It’s nice to see you, General Clark. And then three really special people. Director Freeh, Attorney General Mukasey, and probably the most unsung person in the whole operation, at least from the United States standpoint and probably for all of you, is former Ambassador Lincoln Bloomfield, who played a crucial role in getting the MEK off the terrorist list in America. My hat’s off to you all. I look forward to seeing you in Tehran.
