Iran summons the French ambassador to Tehran for alleged interference

The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned French Ambassador Pierre Cochard, a week after Paris denounced the treatment of two of its diplomats on Iranian soil.

The meeting took place on Sunday, July 26. Pierre Cochard, France's representative in Tehran, was received by the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which accused him of "interference in Iran's internal affairs."

This move comes in response to statements by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who spoke out on July 20 to denounce "an extremely serious act of intimidation by Iranian security services against two French diplomats." One of them was reportedly "assaulted." According to Barrot, the two agents were "detained without reason for several hours" and "interrogated" as part of their mission to support Iranian civil society.

Tehran then refuted these accusations, referring to a brief interrogation following a meeting between diplomats "and several people wanted by the authorities".

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqhai maintained this version of events on Monday. He asserted that the two diplomats had engaged in activities "that were in no way justified" and had "interfered in Iran's internal affairs under the pretext of engaging with civil society."