Written by John Irish
PARIS (Reuters) – U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's new envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg (NYSE:) was in Paris on Saturday to attend an event at the Paris-based opposition National Council of Iranian Resistance, television footage showed. Carried by the group.
Retired Lt. Gen. Kellogg, who is set to serve as Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, postponed a trip to European capitals earlier this month until after Trump's inauguration on January 20.
Kellogg is scheduled to speak at the event later.
He has previously spoken at activities of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, most recently in November, but his presence in Paris, even in his personal capacity, indicates that the group is receiving the attention of the new American administration.
Incoming US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also spoken at NCRI events in the past. The group has repeatedly called for the overthrow of the existing Iranian authorities, although it is unclear how much support it has within Iran.
In her speech at the beginning of the event in Auvers-sur-Oise, the group's headquarters on the outskirts of Paris, Maryam Rajavi, president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, said that the regional balance of power has shifted against the Iranian leadership with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The crushing blow to its most important ally, Hezbollah, is its war with Israel.
She added: “It is time for Western governments to abandon their previous policies and stand with the Iranian people this time.”
Trump pledged to impose maximum pressure on Iran in an attempt to force the country to negotiate an agreement on its nuclear program, ballistic missile program and regional activities.
It was not clear whether Kellogg would use his trip to Paris to meet with French officials to discuss Ukraine. The French presidency, Foreign Ministry, and Trump's transition team did not immediately respond for comment.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran, the political arm of the People's Mujahedin Organization of Iran, has held frequent rallies in France, often attended by former high-ranking officials from the United States, Europe, and Arabs critical of the Islamic Republic.
