IRGC Commander: Some Officials Leaning Towards Liberalism

Mohammad Ali Jafari, the Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), on Tuesday, November 2, referred to the period that began with recent sanctions and reached the post-JCPOA stage, stating that "we are currently in the fourth sedition." He explained that "in this new atmosphere, the outlook and inclination of some officials are towards reliance on the West and liberalism." According to Fars News Agency, Jafari elaborated that he believes the Iran-Iraq War was the "first sedition," the events of 1999 in universities were the "second sedition," and the protests of 2009 over election results were termed "sedition 88," which he claimed was "far more dangerous than the imposed war." Jafari identified the "fourth sedition" as "sedition of infiltration" and stated: "Americans are more eager for the implementation of the JCPOA than we are because they are looking for what comes after the JCPOA." He noted that "in previous threats, military, security, cultural, and political threats existed in the first three seditions, but in the fourth sedition, which started under the pretext of nuclear issues, economic pressure and sanctions were imposed on the people." The IRGC Commander added: "The nuclear issue is merely an excuse and not the enemy's goal; what is important for them is to bring Iran to the negotiating table." Jafari expressed concern that the sedition beginning after the JCPOA could be prolonged and may last several years. He had previously referred to these "four seditions" and identified the United States as the "designer" of these "seditions." Negotiating with the U.S. on other issues is the "biggest threat." According to Fars, the IRGC Commander continued his remarks at a conference titled "The Era of Evasion is Over" held at Tehran University, stating that "this perspective has existed since the beginning of the revolution, which believes that we should negotiate with Americans on other issues, and the Supreme Leader considers this the biggest threat." Jafari continued: "According to the Leader's statements, negotiating with the U.S. is entirely detrimental to us, and they seek infiltration through negotiations." Jafari's remarks refer to the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's emphasis on not negotiating with the United States on regional issues and others. Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated on Sunday, November 1, that "Americans seek to impose their interests, not to solve issues; they want to impose 60 to 70 percent of their demands in negotiations and to implement and impose the rest of their goals illegally, so what does negotiation mean?" The IRGC Commander further stated: "Some not only do not pay attention to their words and positions regarding American infiltration but sometimes even cooperate, while the Supreme Leader considers negotiating with the U.S. equivalent to infiltration." He added: "Unfortunately, the depth of this danger has not yet been understood; the enemy has started its work, but if we understand the danger of infiltration, we must now prevent some of the actions being taken." He emphasized: "If this belief is created in people's minds that an agreement was reached on the nuclear issue, then agreements can also be made on other issues, this is a danger and a sedition." Jafari's statements come as an Iranian delegation attended a meeting to resolve the Syrian crisis, which was held on Friday with the participation of the U.S. Secretary of State and foreign ministers from several other countries in Vienna. Iran's participation in this meeting was at the invitation of the U.S., and Eric Schultz, the White House spokesman, recently emphasized that the U.S. is ready to cooperate with any country, including Russia and Iran, to resolve the Syrian crisis. The IRGC Commander's insistence on refraining from negotiations with the U.S. comes at a time when Iranian President Hassan Rouhani emphasized resolving other disputes through negotiation, referring to the nuclear negotiations with six world powers that led to a comprehensive agreement. Rouhani also mentioned "distrust" towards "some countries," adding that this does not mean that "if we have a problem with a country, we cannot discuss a common goal with that country." In another part of his speech, the IRGC Commander addressed regional events, stating: "Bashar al-Assad is fully committed to the resistance front and standing against arrogance and the West, and after him, we do not see anyone else there." He added: "Some do not realize and say now that if Bashar is not there, someone else will be." Mohammad Ali Jafari continued regarding Russia's military intervention in Syria: "Our northern friend, who has now come to Syria and is providing military assistance, is pursuing his own interests and may not be seeking Assad's survival like us, but he has come now and is helping the resistance either out of obligation or for other reasons." Jafari asserted: "The resistance in Syria is dependent on Assad, and we cannot ignore this issue." He stated that "some actions have been taken that cannot be disclosed" and said: "We will use all our capabilities to provide advisory assistance to the people and government of Syria." "We will do everything we can for Yemen." Mohammad Ali Jafari, referring to Yemen issues, stated: "We will do everything we can regarding Yemen." He added: "There is a lack of a country as a backup alongside Yemen to provide proper assistance, but nonetheless, some actions are being taken, albeit limited." The IRGC Commander concluded with the remark that "the movement and return of Ansarullah to the south was an advantage that enemies think they have won, while this was a strategy, like our 20 percent enrichment and negotiations."