Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has invited Iran’s exiled Crown prince Reza Pahlavi to Canada after the two discussed sanctions, seized regime assets and a democratic future for Iran.“It was a pleasure to speak with Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi about the mission for a free and democratic Iran, returned to the Iranian people and free from the terror of the regime in Tehran,” Poilievre said Thursday.Poilievre said he told Pahlavi about the support he encountered during a Persian community town hall in North Vancouver on Saturday.“I shared with him the tremendous support I saw from Canada’s Persian community in Vancouver and their hope for freedom and democratic change in Iran,” he said.Poilievre said the two discussed “the importance of sustained international pressure on the Islamic Republic” and maintaining internet access for Iranians.They also discussed “using frozen Iranian regime assets rather than Western taxpayer dollars to support the Iranian people,” he said..Poilievre said Iranians must determine the future of their country “through free elections and a democratic constitutional process.”“Conservatives support comprehensive sanctions and the seizure of regime assets, expelling the IRGC from Canada, protecting Persian and Jewish communities here at home from threats and intimidation, and maintaining the Conservative policy of no formal diplomatic relations with the Islamic Republic,” he said.Canada formally listed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist entity in 2024. Ottawa has not maintained diplomatic relations with Tehran since closing its embassy in Iran and expelling Iranian diplomats from Canada in 2012.Pahlavi is the eldest son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Iran’s last shah, whose government was overthrown during the 1979 Islamic Revolution.He has lived outside Iran for decades and has advocated replacing the Islamic Republic with a secular democratic government.Poilievre did not endorse Pahlavi as Iran’s future leader, emphasizing that Iranians should decide the country’s future.“I was also pleased to invite the Crown Prince to visit Canada and look forward to continuing our discussions about how Canada can support the Iranian people in reclaiming their country and securing a free and democratic future,” Poilievre said.
