Region | Iran
Blair accuses Iran of backing terrorism
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has accused Iran of backing terrorism and warned the world faces a situation he likened to "rising fascism in the 1920s".
- Agencies
- Published: 16:18 October 19, 2007
- Image Credit: Reuters
- Blair defended his decision to go to war in Iraq at the charity event in New York.
New York: Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has accused Iran of backing terrorism and warned the world faces a situation he likened to "rising fascism in the 1920s".
Speaking at a charity event in New York, Blair said Iran was prepared to destabilise peaceful countries and urged complete vigilance by the US, Britain and their allies in fighting the threat of extremism.
In his first major speech since stepping down, Blair, now an envoy for the Middle East Quartet, also took the opportunity to further defend his decision to go to war in Iraq.
Speaking on what he called an extremist Islamic ideology, Blair said, "This ideology now has a state - Iran - that is prepared to back and finance terror in the pursuit of destabilising countries whose people wish to live in peace."
"There is a tendency even now, even in some of our own circles, to believe that they are as they are because we have provoked them and if we left them alone they would leave us alone.
"I fear this is mistaken. They have no intention of leaving us alone."
The former PM warned against being "forced into retreat" as the world faced a situation similar to "rising fascism in the 1920s".
Blair also stressed the shared values that he believes unite Britain and the US. He said, "America and Europe should not be divided, we should stand up together."
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