Iran's Leader Extends Membership of Ali Shamkhani and Saeed Jalili in the Supreme National Security Council

On Monday, September 29, the Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran issued a decree extending the membership of Ali Shamkhani and Saeed Jalili in the Supreme National Security Council as his two representatives for another three-year term. Ali Shamkhani was appointed as the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council on September 21, 2013, and has served as the Leader's representative in this council. He was the Minister of Defense during the presidency of Mohammad Khatami and at one point served as the Deputy Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Saeed Jalili served as the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and head of Iran's nuclear negotiation team during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency and was also appointed as the Leader's representative in this council on September 19, 2013. Jalili was supported in the 2013 presidential elections by groups such as the 'Steadfast Front' and other factions close to the Leader. He is a serious critic of the Vienna nuclear agreement and the foreign policy actions of Hassan Rouhani's government. The Supreme National Security Council of Iran was established based on Article 176 of the Constitution, with responsibilities including 'determining defense-security policies' and 'utilizing the material and spiritual resources of the country to counter internal and external threats.' The Leader of the Islamic Republic has two representatives in this council, which also includes the heads of the three branches of government, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, commanders of the IRGC and the Army, and the ministers of Foreign Affairs, Intelligence, and Interior. This council is considered one of the important decision-making centers in the Islamic Republic. Nuclear negotiations during the presidencies of Mohammad Khatami and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were conducted under the leadership of the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, but under Hassan Rouhani's administration, these negotiations were overseen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Vienna nuclear agreement was also approved by the Supreme National Security Council before being ratified by the parliament. The acceptance of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards is among the latest issues currently being examined by this council. Kamal Kharrazi, head of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations of Iran, announced on September 27 that the Supreme National Security Council has approved 'new conditions' for accepting this agreement. Previously, officials from Iran's judiciary stated that the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, leaders of the Green Movement, and the media ban on Mohammad Khatami, the former president, were decided by the Supreme National Security Council, although government officials denied the existence of any resolutions in this regard. Meanwhile, Ali Shamkhani, the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, announced on July 2 that the council currently cannot report on the issue of the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard. During Saeed Jalili's presidency, the Secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council prohibited the publication of certain news and reports in letters to the media.