Supporting Iranian Voices

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Remarks
Michael R. Pompeo
Secretary of State
Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Library
Simi Valley, CA
July 22, 2018

Excerpt:

AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Shouting.) President Trump imprisons children. The Trump-Pence regime is kidnapping children. Trump and Pence --

AUDIENCE: (Booing.)

SECRETARY POMPEO: Despite – despite the regime’s –

AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Shouting off-mike.)

AUDIENCE: (Booing.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Shouting off-mike.)

AUDIENCE: USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA.

SECRETARY POMPEO: Thank you.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Shouting off-mike.)

SECRETARY POMPEO: If there were – if there were only so much freedom of expression in Iran. (Cheers and applause.) ...

[Y]ou should know that the United States is not afraid to spread our message on the airwaves and online inside of Iran either. (Applause.) For 40 years the Iranian people have heard from their leaders that America is the “Great Satan.” We do not believe they are interested in hearing the fake news any longer. (Laughter and applause.)

Today, one in four Iranians – 14 million people – watches or listens to U.S. Government broadcasts each week. And it’s more important than ever now to refute the regime’s lies and repeat our deep desire for friendship with the Iranian people. Right now, our U.S. Board – Broadcasting Board of Governors is taking new steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship as well. The BBG is also launching a new 24/7 Farsi-language TV channel. It will span not only television, but radio, digital, and social media format, so that the ordinary Iranians inside of Iran and around the globe can know that America stands with them. (Applause.) ...

SECRETARY POMPEO: ... The mission set for our team is clear. It’s to deny the Iranian leadership the resources, the wealth, the funds, the capacity to continue to foment terrorism around the world and to deny the people inside of Iran the freedoms that they so richly deserve. How’s that in 30 seconds? (Laughter.)

GOVERNOR WILSON: That’s pretty good. (Applause.) There is a perception among some that Iranians, including students and including legitimate visitors, can’t obtain U.S. visas because of a travel ban. Would you clarify what U.S. policy is regarding what we will call Iranian civil society visitors?

SECRETARY POMPEO: Sure, I’d be happy to do that. So President Trump has made clear with respect to a number of countries that weren’t providing us with sufficient information that we had risks of American security that we were going to do our best to work with those countries to develop the information that we needed. Iran continues to deny us the basic data-sharing systems that hundreds of countries – or, excuse me, dozens and dozens of countries have already provided us. We would like Iran to do that.

We still allow students to come in. There are many students. I’m sure there are students here tonight who are Iranians who are here studying. We welcome that. But this administration does have as one of its primary policies to make sure that we appropriately vet all those who come to the nation so that we can keep our country safe. That’s the plan. That’s the policy. (Applause.) ...