Libertarian foreign policy: the case of Iran

Libertarian foreign policy has generally touted non-intervention in foreign affairs. 

Libertarians certainly don’t believe in war, as both right- and left-libertarians have traditionally and consistently opposed war. Considering that libertarians are fundamentally anti-state, and states are the drivers of war, it is not surprising that libertarians are anti-war. 

Libertarians also, however, believe strongly in self-defense, freedom, and civil liberties. 

The case of the current establishment in Iran, a far-right fundamentalist regime, is most interesting in this respect, challenging libertarian traditions, as research shows that the regime in Iran is explicitly mandated to encroach on the security and civil liberties of individuals outside their jurisdiction, and explicitly, that of Canadians.

One way that the Iran regime does this is by not recognizing the Canadian citizenship of Canadians of Iranian origin. All individuals born in Iran but naturalized as Canadians, therefore, must follow the laws of Iran rather than Canada from that dictatorship’s perspective.

The other problem posed by the current Iran state is that has espoused and prided itself on the expansion or “export” of its ideology globally, including in Canada. Given that its ideology includes atrocious laws such as spousal rape and rape of secular women, and execution of gay men, and leads the world after China in executions for political or social transgressions, a libertarian will be unwillingly but inevitably faced with an international political issue to wish it must respond. The expansion of this form of fundamentalist theocracy to Canada would destroy every sense of freedom and self-respect that we have. 

In the course of my legal and sociological research, I discovered that there are more than 500 certified and documented cases of murders by the Iran regime in foreign countries, including in Europe. 

The Iran government has been found by Canadian courts alone to have intentionally killed 55 Canadians in an aerial terrorist attack.

More and more reports are emerging of threats to the life of Canadians by Iran government agents and loyalists. 

This is despite the fact that the regime in Iran has no democratic or other legitimacy, having come to power through numerous coup d’états and violent campaigns, with its Supreme Leader being picked by a small group of far-right, conservative clerics rather than the people of Iran. 

Clearly, Canada has the prerogative to defend the security of its citizens. For libertarians, this comes from a belief in self-defense. 

It is from this perspective that the libertarian movement faces a changing climate and has to adjust its approach to global affairs.