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The aftermath of Iran’s controversial presidential election in June 2009 is still playing out notably in Iran’s diplomatic core. In the past year, three Iranian diplomats have resigned in protest against the government, and have asked for asylum in Europe. The latest defection came today. Correspondent Cyrus Farivar reports. (Photo: Hamed Saber/Flickr)

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LISA MULLINS: The shuffle over whether to release Sarah Shourd suggests some growing divisions within Iran’s government. And so does another development. The defection of Iranian diplomats. In the past year, three of them have resigned and requested asylum in Europe. As Cyrus Farivar reports, the latest to defect announced his decision today.

CYRUS FARIVAR:  The diplomat’s name is Farzad Farhangian. Last week, he resigned his post as the press attaché in the Iranian Embassy in Brussels. And today in Oslo, Farhangian said he would be seeking asylum in Norway. He joined one of his former colleagues from the Iranian Embassy to Norway who defected in January. Speaking to reporters in Oslo, Farhangian said he supports Iran’s Green Movement, a term referring to the opposition movement that protested the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009.

SPEAKING PERSIAN

FARZAD FARHANGIAN:  I would like to officially announce to all the martyrs of the Green Movement of Iran and all those innocent political prisoners who are still in jail, that due to the events since last year, I have reached the decision to resign. I am seeking political asylum from the Norwegian government, and despite the potential threat to my family and myself, I have still put forward my request.

FARIVAR: Farhangian’s departure adds to a growing group of Iranian diplomatic defectors in the past year. Shahram Kholdi is a lecturer in Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Manchester. He says the numbers are still relatively small, but it’s notable that these diplomats were longtime members of Iran’s foreign service.

SHAHRAM KHOLDI: And these people were the people who were hired at the height of the revolutionary zeal. So I think it has more to do with the quality of these people, that these people are veteran diplomats of the Islamic republic.

FARIVAR: Another Iran watcher, Nader Entessar, says diplomatic defections can be so wrenching that even a handful is significant. He’s a political scientist at the University of South Alabama.

NADER ENTESSAR: During the height of the Cold War, when the Soviet diplomats defected, we didn’t have many of them doing it all at one time. But it’s an indication of widespread dissatisfaction. Because defection is not an easy thing to do. You have to think about your career, you have to think about your family, you have to think about your future.

FARIVAR: Some observers say the defections may be an embarrassment to Tehran, but they don’t pose a serious challenge to the regime. For The World, I’m Cyrus Farivar.

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