Iran summons Dutch ambassador over embassy staff’s Starlink luggage

The Dutch ambassador to Iran, Emiel de Bont, has been summoned by the Iranian government after an incident involving an embassy employee, IRNA reports. He will have to answer questions at the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about prohibited items found in the staff member’s luggage, including a Starlink terminal.

A high-ranking embassy employee was detained at Tehran airport for trying to import satellite phones and a Starlink internet terminal. Following the incident, the Dutch government called in the Iranian ambassador.

The Iranian government bans the import and use of satellite communication tools like Starlink and satellite phones, viewing them as a threat to national security, especially since they can be used to circumvent censorship and share information externally.

The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has reported that the Dutch diplomat’s luggage was seized on January 28 at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport. The matter remained under the radar for almost a month until Iranian state media aired footage of the incident.

Footage aired on Iranian television shows customs officials opening the diplomat’s suitcase and finding items including a portable Starlink modem and multiple satellite phones.

The Ministry, as reported by IRNA, emphasized that while diplomats have immunity, they are required to follow the laws of the host country and must not involve themselves in internal matters.

Iranian authorities maintain that the suitcase was seized “in line with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations” and point to Article 41, which obliges diplomats to abide by local laws and refrain from involvement in domestic matters.

The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it has asked Iran to promptly return the diplomatic shipment, which they say is covered by the Vienna Convention, but the request has not yet been fulfilled.

This suitcase affair comes on top of earlier diplomatic strains between the two countries, such as the suspension of official ties in 2011 after the execution of a Dutch-Iranian woman, and the reciprocal expulsion of diplomats in 2018.