Khamenei: I Agree with a Possible Agreement That Can Be Achieved

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, referred to a potential agreement between Iran and global powers regarding Tehran's nuclear program, stating: "I agree with an agreement that can be achieved, but I do not agree with a bad agreement." According to the website of Khamenei's office, during his annual meeting with the personnel of the Iranian Air Force on Sunday, February 8, he expressed: "Not reaching an agreement is better than an agreement that contradicts the interests of our nation." The leader of the Islamic Republic also said: "Americans constantly say that not reaching an agreement is better than a bad agreement; we agree with this." Khamenei emphasized: "I agree with continuing and advancing negotiations and reaching a good agreement, and certainly the Iranian nation will not oppose any agreement that contains its dignity and respect." He added: "A good point was made by the respected President, that negotiation means both sides reaching common points, which means one side will not get everything it expects in the agreement." The leader of the Islamic Republic also stated that "Iran has temporarily halted the development of enrichment machines, the production of 20% uranium, the Arak facility, and Fordow to reach an agreement, so the Iranian side has acted logically; however, the other side is extorting." He continued: "I do not like the idea that they say to agree on 'general principles' at one point and then on details later; based on our experience with the other side, this will be used as a pretext for repeated excuses in details. If they agree, they should decide on the generalities and details in one session." Josh Earnest, the White House spokesman, reacted to the extension of talks with Iran on Tuesday, December 3, stating: "According to the U.S. President (Barack Obama), not reaching an agreement is better than reaching a bad agreement." Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, stated on January 26 that it is possible to reach a final nuclear agreement between Iran and the powers in the coming weeks, but this agreement (from Israel's perspective) will be "bad" and "unacceptable." Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, responded to Netanyahu's remarks on Saturday, February 7, saying: "From their perspective, any agreement is bad; the only good agreement from Netanyahu's view is no agreement, and even better than that is entering into a conflict with Iran because the Zionist regime sees its existence in tension and conflict in this region." The leader of the Islamic Republic further stated on Sunday: "Our negotiators are trying to take the weapon of sanctions away from the enemy; if they succeed, that would be great; if they do not, everyone should know that there are many ways in the country to blunt this weapon." He emphasized: "Sanctions must also be lifted in the true sense of the word." Khamenei acknowledged on Wednesday, January 7, that international sanctions against Iran "have created problems for the country" and asked the officials of the Islamic Republic to take the "weapon of sanctions" away from what he called the "enemy." The Iranian Parliament on Tuesday, February 3, passed a plan obligating the government to annul the interim Geneva agreement if the U.S. Congress increases sanctions against Iran. The U.S. Senate Banking Committee also approved a plan on January 29, stating that if negotiations between Iran and the six global powers regarding its nuclear program do not yield results by the end of June, Tehran's sanctions will be intensified. Barack Obama, the President of the United States, has emphasized that he will "veto" new congressional sanctions against Iran. Obama has stated that weakening diplomatic efforts to resolve the Iranian nuclear dispute is a mistake in the current sensitive situation. However, Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, accused Obama on Sunday, February 1, of seeking the failure of Iran's nuclear negotiations with Western countries or Iran's submission to what he called "irrelevant demands." Khamenei, on Thursday, December 6, also indicated his lack of opposition to the extension of Iran's nuclear negotiations with the 1+5 group and emphasized Iran's readiness to accept "fair and reasonable arrangements," stating that if these negotiations do not yield results, "the one who will suffer the most is the U.S., not Iran." The provisions of the nuclear agreement "must be unambiguous." According to Fars News Agency, Khamenei, in another part of his speech on Sunday, referred to the issues raised regarding a two-phase nuclear agreement that initially agrees on general principles and later on details, stating: "Such an agreement is not desirable because, based on our experience with the behavior of the other side, mere agreement on generalities will be a means for repeated excuses in details." The leader of the Islamic Republic emphasized: "If an agreement is reached, it must be in one phase and include both generalities and details together." He added: "The provisions of this agreement must also be clear, explicit, and unambiguous, and the provisions of the agreement should not be such that the other side, which is accustomed to bargaining, can make excuses in various matters." Iran and the six global powers reached a six-month nuclear agreement last December, but the deadline for negotiations for a final agreement has since been extended. It has been agreed that the parties will reach a "political agreement" by March and a final nuclear agreement by July 10.