Heartless Regime Aligns with Russian Bear and Chinese Dragon, Slick with Oil and Crude Treachery
Don’t look now but regime change in Iran may be directly in U.S. interests as the Mullahs are more actively aligning with China and Russia. This would also give Americans reason to support the upcoming protests in Brussels.
Dragons & Mullahs & Bears, Oh My.
Amid Iran’s escalating alignment with Russia and China—highlighted by Moscow and Beijing shielding Tehran from renewed Western pressure—it’s time for the U.S. to stand with the only credible democratic alternative: the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).
On September 6, tens of thousands of Iranians and international dignitaries will gather in Brussels to demand an end to executions and to call on Europe to trigger the snapback mechanism against Tehran’s nuclear program. This mass rally, featuring leaders from the U.S., UK, and EU, is more than a protest—it is proof that global solidarity exists to end the mullahs’ reign and replace it with democracy.
The NCRI’s leaders—Alireza Jafarzadeh, Shahin Gobadi, Ali Safavi, and others—are available to discuss how this moment connects Iran’s domestic resistance with the global fight against authoritarianism. For the NCRI, the regime’s alliance with China and Russia is not a strength but a liability: it exposes Tehran’s dependence on authoritarian backers and alienates the Iranian people who reject both dictatorship at home and foreign domination abroad.
For the U.S., the stakes are clear: unchecked Iran threatens global security through nuclear proliferation, regional destabilization, and gross human rights abuses. By amplifying the NCRI’s resistance and aligning with protests like Brussels, Washington can:
- Undermine Tehran’s legitimacy by exposing its reliance on Beijing and Moscow.
- Support the NCRI’s internal movement, showing Iranians, they are not alone.
- Counter authoritarian solidarity with the vision of a free, democratic Iran aligned with Western values.
The September 6 protest is a reminder that the fight for freedom in Iran is not abstract. It is on the streets, in exile, and at the heart of the geopolitical realignment. The U.S. has an opportunity—and an obligation—to back the Iranian people’s struggle for democracy.
Let’s connect on how best to spotlight this convergence of protest, policy, and principle.
Speakers Available:
Mohammad Mohaddessin – Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
Alireza Jafarzadeh – Deputy Director of NCRI
Shahin Gobadi – Nuclear Engineer and member of NCRI
Ali Safavi – Member of NCRI Parliament in Exile
Robert Torricelli – Former U.S. Senator (D-NJ)
Dr. Ramesh Sepehrrad – Iranian American Scholar and Cybersecurity Executive
Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan – Associate Dean and Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore
Dr. Kazem Kazerounian – Dean of College of Engineering; expert on Iran’s Nuclear program
Related Article(s)
Russia and China Give Iran Nuclear Deal Boost – Newsweek
Iran News in Brief – August 21, 2025 – NCRI
Optional Q&A
- How is Iran’s growing partnership with Russia and China reshaping the global balance of power?
- Why should the United States view the NCRI’s goals as directly aligned with its own national security interests?
- In what ways does the Iran–Russia–China axis threaten U.S. influence in the Middle East and beyond?
- What makes the NCRI uniquely positioned to counter the mullahs from within Iran?
- How can exposing Iran’s reliance on authoritarian allies weaken the regime’s grip at home?
- What role does unrestricted warfare—economic, cyber, and ideological—play in Tehran’s survival strategy?
- Why is now the right moment for the U.S. and the NCRI to strengthen collaboration?
- How would a democratic Iran alter the future of global stability and U.S. foreign policy?
ABOUT ALIREZA JAFARZADEH…
Alireza Jafarzadeh serves as the Deputy Director of the Washington Office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). He is also the author of The Iran Threat (Palgrave MacMillan, New York, 2008).
A recognized expert on Iranian policy, Jafarzadeh has been at the forefront of efforts to prevent the Iranian regime from acquiring nuclear weapons. His groundbreaking work in 2002 and 2003 led to the discovery of key illicit nuclear sites in Iran, including the Natanz uranium enrichment facility, the Arak heavy water plant, the Kalaye Electric centrifuge testing facility near Tehran, and the Lashkar Ab’ad laser enrichment facility. These revelations prompted the first-ever inspections of Iranian nuclear sites by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Jafarzadeh is a frequent guest on major television and radio networks, including CBS Evening News, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, CNBC, Bloomberg TV, and France 24. His insights have also been featured in leading publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Time, and The Hill.
ABOUT MOHAMMAD MOHADDESSIN…
Mohammad Mohaddessin is the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). NCRI is a coalition of various political tendencies and democratic forces working to establish a free and pluralistic republic based on democratic values.
Mohammad Mohaddessin was born in Qom, Iran, the son of a Grand Ayatollah who was opposed to the regime. He studied both in religious seminary and modern education.
In the 1970s, While he was a student in Iran’s most prestigious Sharif University, in 1975 he was arrested and sentenced to 15 years for his affiliation with the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI) and opposition to the shah dictatorship. While in prison he was severely tortured.
Mohaddessin has lectured on numerous international forums on Iranian affairs and has represented the Iranian resistance in many international events and conferences.
He has written extensively on political and religious regional issue in Iran and the region. He is the author of “Islamic Fundamentalism: The New Global Threat”, published in 1993 (Seven Locks Press, Washington) in which he addressed the emerging threat of Islamic fundamentalism in the world.
In addition to many articles and essays, Mr. Mohaddessin has authored several other books, including Enemies of Ayatollahs, Democracy Betrayed and The Unethical Policy.
ABOUT SOONA SAMSAMI…
Soona Samsami is the representative in the United States for Iran’s Parliament-in-exile, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).
As an activist of gender equality, she has spoken at many conferences and attended many international forums. Her advocacy has led to numerous actionable items for the U.N. Special Rapporteur on human trafficking and violence against women in Iran and UN human rights resolutions on the situation of minorities and youth in Iran.
Samsami has taken part in several press conferences in Washington, DC, and has authored many articles in, and has been interviewed by major media including The New York Times, The Hill, Roll Call, The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, C-Span, and CNN. She has spoken at briefings in the United States Congress, and the United Nations. She has also lectured at George Mason University among other universities and colleges. She studied city planning and architecture at Michigan State University.
ABOUT ZOLAL HABIBI…
Zolal Habibi, an Iranian human rights activist and a prominent voice for justice, and women’s rights in Iran. She serves on the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). With over two decades of activity, in recent years she has often appeared in international forums, human rights conferences, and live broadcasts. Zolal’s activism began in her teens, shaped by the loss of her father—a respected Iranian writer and political dissident—who was killed by the regime in 1988.
ABOUT SAFORA SADIDI…
Safora Sadidi is a human rights advocate and a member of the Women’s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran.
Ms. Sadidi, who has lost her father and six members of her family at the hands of the clerical regime, has devoted more than two decades to the Iranian Resistance in the areas of human rights, women’s rights, situation of youth in Iran, and international policy on Iran.
Born in Iran and raised in Denmark after her family fled persecution, Safora combines legal expertise with first-hand experience.
Fluent in Persian, English, Danish, and conversant in German, she is a powerful, articulate, and compassionate voice for human rights and freedom in Iran.
For the last two decades, Safora has actively engaged national parliaments in Europe, particularly Nordic countries, Australia and Canada, across the Nordic, joining them in high-level conferences and forums on the Iranian issue. She has addressed several international conferences on Iran and has had extensive exchanges with former senior European government officials on Iran.
In addition to her advocacy work, Ms. Sadidi has had presence in both broadcast and print media and shedding light on the plight of the Iranian people through numerous on-camera interviews and contributions.
ABOUT SHAHIN GOBADI…
Shahin Gobadi, a U.S.-educated nuclear engineer, is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Iran’s Parliament-in-Exile.
An astute observer of Iranian affairs for over three decades, Gobadi is an expert on topics including Iranian state-sponsored terrorism, proxy groups in the Middle East, the Iranian nuclear and weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs, Western policy toward Iran, and internal Iranian affairs.
He has been interviewed by major international media outlets, including CNN, Fox News, BBC, Sky TV, GB News, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, Reuters, and the Associated Press. Gobadi’s writings have appeared in prominent media across the U.S. and Europe.
ABOUT ALI SAFAVI…
Ali Safavi is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Iran’s Parliament-in-Exile.
A sociologist by training, Safavi studied and taught at UCLA, California State University Los Angeles, and the University of Michigan. He was an active participant in the anti-Shah student movement in the 1970s in the United States and has been deeply engaged in Iranian affairs ever since.
Safavi has lectured and written extensively on Iran, Iraq, terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and Middle Eastern politics. He has appeared in interviews on networks such as CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, BBC, Sky TV, Newsmax, and France 24. His articles and commentary have been published in leading outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Hill, The Boston Herald, The Washington Times, and The Financial Times.
ABOUT AMBASSADOR ROBERT JOSEPH…
Ambassador Robert Joseph was the United States Special Envoy for Nuclear Nonproliferation. Prior to this post, Joseph was the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, a position he held until January 24, 2007. He was Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Proliferation Strategy at the White House.
Ambassador Joseph is known for being instrumental in creating the Proliferation Security Initiative and as the architect of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism. He was also the US chief negotiator to Libya in 2003 who convinced Qaddafi to give up Libya’s WMD programs.
ABOUT ROBERT TORRICELLI…
Senator Robert Torricelli served 14 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the 9th district of New Jersey until January 1997, when he was elected as Democratic Senator from the state of New Jersey. While in the Congress, he was the leading voice for a free Iran and has been advocate of a free and democratic Iran for the past three decades.
In 1999, he joined the Democratic Leadership as the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Senator Torricelli served in the House Foreign Affairs Committee as the chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere.
Senator Torricelli earned his law degree from Rutgers University and completed a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Before becoming a member of the U.S. Congress, Torricelli served as associate counsel to then-Vice President Walter Mondale.
ABOUT DR. RAMESH SEPEHRRAD…
Dr. Ramesh Sepehrrad is a leading Iranian-American scholar, published author, cybersecurity executive, and human rights advocate, known for her tireless efforts to advance a non-nuclear, secular, and democratic republic in Iran. As Chair of the Advisory Board of the Organization of Iranian American Communities (OIAC), she plays a pivotal role in bipartisan majority of congressional advocacy, including support for various house resolutions, which endorses the Iranian people’s aspirations for freedom and Maryam Rajavi’s ten-point plan.
Born in Shiraz, Iran, Ramesh’s commitment to justice is deeply personal. Her family endured brutal persecution under both the Shah’s monarchy and the current theocratic regime. Several relatives were imprisoned, tortured, or executed for their opposition to tyranny—an experience that has shaped her life’s mission to amplify the voices of Iran’s oppressed.
After seeking refuge in the United States in 1985, Dr. Sepehrrad earned a B.S. in Computer Science from SUNY Buffalo, an M.A. in Political Science, and a Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University. She has also taught graduate courses on conflict, gender, and human rights at George Mason, University of Connecticut where she was inducted as the Distinguished Engineer, and University of Baltimore.
Professionally, she has held senior executive roles in cybersecurity and risk management where she has earned numerous industry awards and recognition.
Through academic rigor, policy engagement, and grassroots mobilization, Dr. Sepehrrad is a compelling voice for democratic change in Iran—rejecting both monarchy and theocracy in favor of a republic rooted in gender equality, human rights and the rule of law.
ABOUT DR. IVAN SASCHA SHEEHAN…
Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is a Professor of Public and International Affairs and the Associate Dean of the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore. He has undertaken extensive research on U.S.-Iran Policy and counterterrorism operations.
A well-established authority on Iranian affairs, Sheehan’s work in the past decade has involved both peer-reviewed scholarship and policy-oriented writing on the Islamic Republic of Iran and their democratic political opposition. He has authored several books on the topic. His latest book is titled “The Ayatollah’s Hidden Hand: Tehran’s Covert Campaign to Undermine Its Principal Opposition.”
He frequently speaks on policy-oriented matters in Washington, D.C. and participates in scholarly conferences around the world.
Over the past fifteen years, Dr. Sheehan has addressed diverse audiences from academic forums in Europe and at Harvard Law School to policymakers in the U.S. Congress, the National Press Club, and film premieres for the National Geographic Channel. Dr. Sheehan continues to serve as a subject matter expert and consultant on a range of international conflict issues and public policy matters.
Dr. Sheehan is the author of more than one hundred publications and has appeared in Newsweek, National Review, The National Interest, Foreign Policy, Fox News, U.S. News & World Report, among others.
He served on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts Boston in the John W. McCormack School of Policy Studies. He previously taught at Bentley College, Tufts University, and George Mason University, after receiving a Ph.D. in 2006.
ABOUT DR. KAZEM KAZEROUNIAN…
Dr. Kazem Kazerounian is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Connecticut and served as Dean of the College of Engineering from 2012 to 2024.
He is a member of The Free Iran Scholars Network. A passionate advocate for democracy and human rights, Dr. Kazerounian is also an expert on Iran and the Middle East, particularly regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, and human rights situation in Iran. He has contributed widely through scholarly articles, invited talks, and media interviews on regional affairs and the democratic movement in Iran.
Nationally, he has held leadership roles with ASEE and ASME, shaping engineering policy and education. His honors include the ASME Mechanisms and Robotics Award, AIMBE Fellowship, and induction into the Connecticut Academy of Science & Engineering.
An ASME Fellow, his research spans kinematics, robotics, and biomechanics. He has authored over 160 scholarly works and co-founded AcademicKeys.com and AcademicJournal.com, a professional platform and an online journal for academics.
This material is distributed by Special Guests Publicity LLC on behalf of National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) / Media Strategy Consulting LTD. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC.
CONTACT:
For further details or to arrange the interview, please contact Jerry McGlothlin at 919-437-0001 / Bookings@SeasonalLiving.com
