UPDATE 1-EU's Kallas says Iran is seeking to escalate conflict

Kallas said Iran had been considerably weakened, ⁠and that she saw a chance for the Iranian people to "determine ⁠their own future." She ⁠also said the EU was continuing to work through diplomatic channels to pursue de-escalation in ‌the region.

​Iran is seeking ‌to escalate the ​conflict in the Middle East by attacking other countries in the region ‌indiscriminately, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Thursday.

"Iran is an exporter of war," Kallas told reporters at a press conference ‌with Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis during a visit to ‌Zurich. "Right now, the regime tries to drag as many countries into this war as possible." When asked whether she thought Iran was trying ⁠to ​suck NATO into ⁠the conflict and whether the EU had a strategy to avoid getting involved, ⁠Kallas accused Tehran of trying to "sow chaos" in the region and ​attacking other countries "indiscriminately".

Both NATO and the EU had ⁠mechanisms enabling members to decide on whether they needed to call for ⁠help, ​she said. This had not been the case so far, she added. Kallas said Iran had been considerably weakened, ⁠and that she saw a chance for the Iranian people to "determine ⁠their own future."

She ⁠also said the EU was continuing to work through diplomatic channels to pursue de-escalation in ‌the region.