Government's Response to Opponents: The JCPOA was a Decision of the System

On Friday, August 13, the head of Hassan Rouhani's office, the President of Iran, reacted to attacks from some hardliners against the nuclear agreement, emphasizing that "the JCPOA and its approval and implementation were decisions of the system." Mohammad Nahavandian, who spoke with the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), stated: "Those who obstructed the approval of the JCPOA are still not stopping their obstruction and continue to hinder its implementation and realization." The nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, known as the JCPOA, has recently come under renewed attacks from factions of hardliners, with some labeling it as a document of "betrayal" by the Iranian President against the country. For instance, Hamid Rouhani, head of the Center for Historical Research and Encyclopedia of the Islamic Revolution, has called for the prosecution of Hassan Rouhani, while Kazem Sedighi, the temporary Friday prayer leader of Tehran, claimed that Iranian negotiators allowed inspections of all state secrets through the JCPOA. These attacks intensified especially after Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, described the JCPOA as "a fruitless experience" in negotiations with the U.S. and accused Washington of "betrayal." However, Mohammad Nahavandian pointed to Hassan Rouhani's views on the JCPOA, stating that "the JCPOA was a victorious effort to remove obstacles and a necessary condition for the country's progress." According to him, "the JCPOA removed barriers to investment [in the country], but domestic and foreign investors will only invest if they see a favorable environment." Nahavandian added: "Anyone who helps make the investment climate in Iran more positive and trustworthy will help resolve this issue, and anyone who creates doubt or portrays the environment as ambiguous and cloudy is certainly not serving the country, and sometimes their actions can turn into betrayal." Previously, Hassan Rouhani had stated that the JCPOA brought dignity to Iran, but Ahmad Alamolhoda, the Friday prayer leader and representative of Ali Khamenei in Khorasan Razavi province, indirectly described Rouhani as a "naive" person in response to these remarks. In this context, Jahangiri stated: "Some of the remarks against Rouhani are very trivial." The Israeli Energy Minister remarked that Iran has so far respected its JCPOA commitments. Jahangiri called on the judiciary to deal with those insulting the president. Shamkhani stated that Iran's $400 million claim from the U.S. was unrelated to nuclear negotiations. The representative of the Wali Faqih in the IRGC claimed that the U.S. is seeking to overthrow the regime through engagement. Hashemi Rafsanjani noted that some burn embassies in the name of revolutionary zeal.