Zelensky meets with Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Reza Pahlavi, Iranian opposition figure and exiled son of the country's last monarch, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 13.
In a social media post after the meeting, Zelensky said Ukraine "supports the Iranian people in their struggle for their future" and expressed sympathy "with all the victims of the Iranian regime."
Zelensky said the two discussed the situation inside Iran and "the areas in which the people of Iran need support," as well as the importance of strengthening sanctions against Iran and other authoritarian governments.
He also condemned cooperation between Moscow and Tehran, citing Iran's supply of Shahed drones to Russia and what he described as the transfer of licenses related to their production.
"Such a partnership poses a real threat not only to Ukraine, but also to the entire region," Zelensky wrote.
Zelensky thanked Pahlavi for supporting Ukraine's territorial integrity and said Ukraine was prepared to help "to protect human lives."
Pahlavi, who has lived in exile since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled his father—the last shah of Iran—said on social media he was "very pleased" to meet Zelensky.
"We represent two nations that are fighting against threats to their freedom and national sovereignty," Pahlavi wrote. "Our two nations are bound together by this very reality and also by the extraordinary courage of their people."
Pahlavi has advocated for a secular, democratic Iran, though his prominence among opposition figures and influence inside the country are debated. During Iran's most recent wave of protests, he urged demonstrators to overthrow the government.
