Leading politicians would not pass a school geography test.
Members of the European Parliament were unable to find Iran on the world map, confusing the republic with Turkey and other Middle Eastern countries, writes Le Parisien.
A correspondent for TMC's Quotidien program surveyed MEPs in Strasbourg in early March. The journalist provided them with a map that did not label the countries and asked them to point out Iran.
The French Minister Delegate for European Affairs chose the Strait of Hormuz, Socialist Party MEP Emma Rafovitch pointed to Bulgaria, and Renaissance Party MEP Fabien Keller confused Iran with Turkey.
Green Party MEP Marie Toussaint, after much hesitation, pointed to Afghanistan. Another Green Party MEP, David Cormand, believed he found the answer by indicating Saudi Arabia, writes Le Parisien.
Commenting on the survey, Cormand stated that the MEPs "have no innate knowledge."
"We do everything we can. There are many subjects we need to study, so we are not walking encyclopedias; we do our best to stay informed," the parliamentarian said.
Co-chair of the Unsubmissive France party, Manon Aubry, who answered correctly, wrote on social media that the mistakes would be funny if the European Parliament did not have to make decisions regarding U.S. military actions in Iran.
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