Ali Larijani: The Lausanne Statement is a Good Sign for Resolving the Nuclear Issue

The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament described the press statement issued in Lausanne following the nuclear agreement with the P5+1 countries as a "good sign regarding the resolution of Iran's nuclear issue" and stated that at the beginning of this year, "the government's efforts in the nuclear issue show a good outlook." According to the state news agency IRNA, Ali Larijani emphasized on Monday, April 6, that "the path taken has been promising and our people are happy that a clear path has emerged, and this will definitely have its effects." Mr. Larijani stated that the lifting of sanctions would help Iran's economy, adding, "I am not saying this is the complete cause; certainly, this issue is part of the axes and topics." The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament also expressed hope that Iran's nuclear negotiating team would be able to fulfill "the will of the Iranian nation," which he said is "to have nuclear knowledge with its specific regulations." On Sunday, Mohammad Hassan Abutalebi, the Deputy Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, had described the Lausanne agreement as the acknowledgment of Iran's definition in the "nuclear club" by its enemies. Meanwhile, Mohammad Reza Bahonar, another Deputy Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, on Monday, thanked the Iranian nuclear negotiating team and added, "The phase of negotiations from today until July 1 will certainly be more sensitive and important than before, and our negotiators must ensure that the nuclear rights of the great Iranian nation are preserved." According to the Tasnim news agency, he also stated, "The behaviors of the opposite side have repeatedly shown that they are not trustworthy; therefore, this caution must exist so that words and expressions that can be interpreted and misinterpreted are never used in the texts of the agreement." The statements of these members of the Iranian Parliament's leadership come as in recent days, some members of Parliament, including Alireza Zakani, Ismail Kowsari, Hamid Rasai, Mansour Haqiqatpour, and Mohammad Hossein Asafari, have strongly criticized the Lausanne agreement. On the other hand, the session of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament on Sunday regarding the Lausanne agreement led to a "verbal clash" between Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Iranian Foreign Minister, and Javad Karimi Qodusi, a principlist member of Parliament. According to reports, this clash occurred after Javad Karimi Qodusi's comments about the Supreme Leader's warning to the Iranian nuclear negotiating team and Zarif calling these remarks "lies." Meanwhile, Hamid Baidi-Nejad, a member of Iran's nuclear negotiating team, on Monday referred to the negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 in Lausanne, stating, "The Supreme Leader has been fully aware of the decisions, and Dr. Rouhani has also been fully informed of the negotiations." Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, has not yet publicly commented on the agreement reached in the negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 in Lausanne, Switzerland. On Monday, Hamidreza Moghadamfar, an advisor to the Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, stated that "excitement" or "pure opposition" to the Lausanne statement is "not an appropriate position." According to the Tasnim news agency, he referred to the negotiations between Iran and Western governments during the presidency of Mohammad Khatami and Hassan Rouhani, adding, "At that time, the opposite side did not even allow Iran to keep a few centrifuges, but today they have reluctantly recognized the right to enrichment on Iranian soil and agreed to the operation of 5-6 thousand centrifuges." According to Mr. Moghadamfar, based on the Lausanne agreement, some of the "red lines" set by what he called the "enemy," especially in matters such as "Fordow, research and development, and centrifuges," have been crossed, and the Arak nuclear facilities have also been "preserved in some way." The advisor to the IRGC commander also stated, "Regarding how sanctions will be lifted... there are significant ambiguities and concerns, and we hope that in the final agreement, the necessity of the immediate lifting of all sanctions (UN Security Council, the US, and the EU) will be emphasized immediately after the agreement." According to the agreement between Iran and the P5+1 countries in Lausanne, it is planned that gradually and under specific conditions, in exchange for Iran's increased cooperation with the West for verifying the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear program, global sanctions will also be reduced accordingly. Previously, Hassan Firouzabadi, the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, had congratulated and supported the Lausanne agreement.