Today, Saturday, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence announced the unveiling of what it described as the “Termite Project,” accusing France of being behind a secret plan aimed at building networks of influence and interfering in Iranian internal affairs, and sending a warning to Paris against repeating what it considered “illegal activities.”
The Ministry said, in a statement, that the case arose during its investigations into a file related to “foreign influence and interference,” noting that its officers discovered, while executing a judicial order to arrest two suspects, the presence of French diplomats at the site of a secret meeting.
Iranian intelligence described the presence of the diplomats at the site as “illegal,” explaining that it had verified their identities and informed the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the incident.
According to the Iranian version, the diplomats were dealt with through the competent diplomatic channels, while the authorities continue to investigate the case and examine the documents that they said were found at the site of the meeting.
The Ministry accused the French diplomats of having “an extensive record of violations and behavior in violation of internal laws and diplomatic pledges,” without revealing their identities or providing independent details proving the accusations against them.
Tehran went further than the incident of the meeting, saying that preliminary investigations revealed, according to its account, a broader project targeting “foreign influence and interference” and creating the conditions for French measures affecting Iran’s independence.
She added that the alleged plan is based on identifying targeted people to communicate with, establishing secret contacts inside and outside Iran, leading to the establishment of networks that operate according to secret mechanisms.
The Ministry of Intelligence also claimed to find contracts related to the project bearing the signature of the former French ambassador to Iran, demanding that the French government provide clarifications regarding what it described as “illegal and intrusive activities.”
According to the information contained in the report, there was no French response to the new Iranian accusations, while the details of the “Termite Project” remain based at this stage on the narrative of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence.
The announcement comes in light of repeated tensions between Tehran and Paris, which over the past years have witnessed mutual diplomatic summons and disputes related to human rights and security files, in addition to Iranian accusations against Western parties of trying to communicate with networks and individuals inside the country.
Tehran had previously summoned the French ambassador against the backdrop of accusations related to Paris’ communication with members of Iranian civil society, while France and European countries, in turn, accuse Iran of detaining foreign citizens and using their files as a political pressure card, accusations that Tehran denies.
In its latest statement, Iranian intelligence accused France of double standards, citing the law passed by Paris in 2024 to confront foreign interference, considering that the French government is therefore aware of the frameworks related to preventing foreign interference.
Tehran called on the French government to change its policy towards Iran, warning that measures would be taken against those involved in the event of a repetition of the activities that French diplomats are accused of carrying out, which would open the door to a new round of diplomatic tension between the two countries.
