Germany is pushing hard for the European Union (EU) to designate Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist entity.

Led by Germany’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU), a proposal was drafted on Monday to fundamentally change the EU’s approach towards Tehran, asserting that under Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei the Islamic Republic has become an unequivocal enemy of global freedom and rights.

Key proposals include advancing EU legislation to label the IRGC as a terror organization and establishing a strategic partnership with moderate Arab nations like the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, who signed a historic peace agreement with Israel in 2020. It also advocates for closing institutions that serve as mouthpieces for Iran’s propaganda machine, such as Hamburg’s Islamic Center.

In regard to Iran’s illegal nuclear ambitions, the CDU calls for a united front comprising Germany, France, Britain, and the United States to impose more stringent sanctions.

Recently, Iran installed two more cascades of advanced centrifuges at its deeply buried Fordow enrichment facility. With over 140 kilograms of highly-enriched uranium allegedly stockpiled, the International Atomic Energy Agency has warned Iran could cross the enrichment threshold for weapons-grade nuclear material within weeks.

However, EU opposition leaders argue that tougher sanctions may produce devastating global economic consequences.

According to Iran International, despite heavy international sanctions, Iranian oil exports have surged from 400,000 barrels in 2019 to over 1,500,000 barrels in 2023 by selling via a sophisticated network of front companies and intermediaries. With China emerging as the primary consumer of Iranian oil, the billions of dollars generated have directly funded the IRGC and its war of destruction against Israel.