US Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO), senior United States senator for Missouri, addressed at the Free Iran World Summit 2021 on July 10, 2021.

I’m Senator Roy Blunt, I’m honored to join you today by video to support all of those who stand for a free and democratic Iran. The current regime in Iran, as you all know, is not simply sustainable or effective as an option for the Iranian people.

Safety and protections are the most fundamental service that a government should provide to its citizens, but the ayatollah and his enablers continue to deny the Iranian people basic political, religious or social freedoms, including the basic right to life itself.

Iranian authorities conduct unimaginable horrors, especially against those who dared to speak the truth. These abuses have to stop. The Iranian regime’s brutal repressions tied to another basic principle of government, the fundamental right of citizens to determine who they are governed by and to elect leaders who support their beliefs and their well-being.

This is not happening in Iran today. By stifling dissident and holding these sham elections, the Iranian government is revealing the truth. It’s deeply afraid of its own people, and the power the ordinary citizen have when allowed to speak up and demand a different future. I’m encouraged by the protests that have taken place in recent years that reflect these very principles of life. I hope we can see them continue.

I truly believe that it is possible to achieve a better, free government in Iran. I believe we have to continue to hold the Iranian regime accountable for its abuses at home and for its aggressive actions around the world. Every day the regime continues its missile development, support for terrorism, nuclear enrichment and weapons trafficking, we are less safe than we were the day before. I’m proud of the leadership the United States has taken in the last administration to hold this regime accountable for its crimes.

And I’ll continue to urge president Biden to take this approach as well. Thank you again for the opportunity to speak today and support of freedom, stability and democracy. You can be sure that I’ll continue to work across the US government to advance these principles.