Khamenei: I Made a Mistake Regarding JCPOA Negotiations; I Will Prohibit Negotiations with the U.S.

According to ILNA news agency, the leader of the Islamic Republic stated on Tuesday that he considers the nuclear negotiations a mistake, saying, "In the matter of negotiations, I made a mistake and allowed the experience at the insistence of certain individuals, who of course also crossed the established red lines." He further added, "The red lines we specified were not respected; therefore, Imam [Khomeini] prohibited negotiations with the U.S., and I will prohibit them as well." Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, speaking on Tuesday, August 13, during a meeting with a group of individuals at the Hosseiniyeh of Imam Khomeini in Tehran, said, "We can only enter the dangerous game of negotiations with the U.S. when we achieve the desired power economically, politically, and culturally, and their pressures and provocations do not affect us. However, currently, negotiations will definitely be detrimental to us and are prohibited." He emphasized that Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, "also prohibited negotiations with the U.S. until this regime becomes civilized; we also emphasize this point." He stressed, "The Islamic Republic can negotiate with the U.S. whenever it reaches a level of power that U.S. pressure and provocations do not affect it. Today, this is not the case; therefore, Imam prohibited negotiations with the U.S., and I will prohibit them as well." Khamenei added, "Even if hypothetically we were to negotiate with the Americans, we would never negotiate with the current government." The statements from this speech, including the admission of mistakes regarding the JCPOA, were altered and published in a 'modified' form by some domestic news agencies and also by Khamenei's official website after their initial release. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, who withdrew his country from the nuclear agreement with Iran, the JCPOA, and reinstated relevant sanctions against Iran, has recently expressed readiness to negotiate with the Islamic Republic, even without preconditions. Following him, the U.S. Secretary of State supported Trump's remarks, stating, "If the Iranians show a commitment to make fundamental changes in how they treat their people, reduce their destructive behavior in the region, and accept that it is worthwhile to enter into an agreement that truly prevents the proliferation of nuclear weapons, then the President has said he is ready to sit down and talk with them." Iranian officials have reacted multiple times to these expressions of readiness, but this is the first explicit response from the leader of the Islamic Republic on this issue. On Tuesday, Khamenei referred to Trump's and Pompeo's statements, saying, "Americans have recently been shamelessly talking about us. Besides sanctions, they mention two other things: one is the issue of war and the other is negotiation. They raise the specter of war to scare the cowards. In the matter of negotiation, they are playing a trivial game. One says negotiations with preconditions, another says negotiations without preconditions. Let me say two words about this to the people: there will be no war, and we will not negotiate. This was the summary so that all the people of Iran know." Khamenei also stated that the reason for the depreciation of the foreign rial is internal. He expressed that "the depreciation of the national currency is one of the current economic problems of the country," saying, "When the price of the rial drops like this, it is the daily wage worker who has nothing left." The Iranian currency has recently experienced severe fluctuations, with the price of the U.S. dollar in the unofficial market exceeding ten thousand tomans again just days after the announcement of new currency policies by Hassan Rouhani's government. Khamenei added, "Economic experts and many officials agree that the cause of this issue is not external; it is internal. Not that sanctions have no effect, but the main impact is related to performance. If performances are better, more prudent, timely, and stronger, sanctions will not have much effect, and we can withstand them." These remarks from the leader of the Islamic Republic come at a time when in the majority of news and analyses, the return of stringent U.S. sanctions against Iran has been cited as one of the main factors for the skyrocketing prices of foreign currencies in Iranian markets. Khamenei's recent statements align with criticisms from a group of officials, especially conservatives in the Islamic Republic, who consider the mismanagement of Hassan Rouhani's government as the main cause of the current situation and are calling for significant changes in the government. These pressures have so far led to the dismissal of Rouhani's Minister of Labor. The severe currency and economic problems in Iran have intensified following the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA, and Khamenei also referred to the JCPOA in his remarks. He stated, "The JCPOA negotiations were a mistake," adding, "In the matter of negotiations, I made a mistake and allowed the experience at the insistence of certain individuals, who of course also crossed the established red lines. The President admitted that if it were not for your limitations, we would have given more concessions." According to Khamenei, "All people feel the current livelihood problems. A part of the people are truly under pressure, and this inflation of food and housing, etc., weighs on the people." In recent months, various protests and demonstrations have emerged regarding the economic situation, political conditions, environmental issues, or the quality and availability of drinking water in various cities in Iran. Protests over the economic situation in Iran have taken on a political direction, with harsh slogans against senior officials of the Islamic Republic, Iran's presence in other regional countries, or even in support of the Pahlavi dynasty being raised. Khamenei continued his speech on Tuesday, saying, "For example, in the issue of currency and coins, due to some mismanagement and negligence, the country's currency ended up in the hands of those who exploited it. This problem is related to management and executive policy-making. When currency and coins are distributed incorrectly, this distribution has two sides: one who receives it and one who gives it. We are always looking for the one who takes it, while the main fault lies with the one who gave it; we do not say it is treason, but it is a big mistake." These remarks from Khamenei come at a time when for some time now, individuals receiving currency and coins have faced governmental intimidation, including Hossein Rahimi, the commander of Tehran's police force, who reported on July 4 that an individual had been arrested who, according to him, had collected "about two tons of coins" over a period of ten months. Meanwhile, according to the regulations of Iran's Central Bank, there are no restrictions on purchasing coins, and Iranian laws do not mention any crime related to holding coins. Khamenei denied the existence of systemic corruption in the Islamic Republic, stating, "Some speak excessively and say everyone is corrupt and use the term systemic corruption; this is not the case. It is true that even a little corruption is too much. However, excess and deficiency in all areas is wrong." Ahmad Tavakoli, a former member of parliament, had previously warned that government institutions in Iran have reached a stage of "systemic corruption" and that "the responsible institutions for combating corruption have themselves become afflicted with degrees of corruption." Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, has also recently stated that the Islamic Republic is more like a mafia than a government. The Secretary of State, naming several senior officials of the Iranian government, including the leader and the head of the judiciary, says they are more focused on accumulating wealth for themselves than serving citizens and are spending Iran's wealth on the Revolutionary Guards or supporting Hezbollah in Lebanon and Bashar al-Assad's government. Reuters published an investigative report five years ago, stating that Ayatollah Khamenei controls an organization called the "Executive Headquarters of Imam's Command" with assets estimated at "over 95 billion dollars." Reuters emphasized that "control of this vast economic empire is in the hands of one person, and that is Ayatollah Khamenei," noting that this wealth "even surpasses the wealth accumulated by the former Shah of Iran." In another part of his remarks on Tuesday, Khamenei said, "When there is a confrontation with corruption and corrupt individuals, there are loud cries. Several years ago, I wrote a letter to the heads of the three branches and stated that corruption is a seven-headed dragon that must be completely confronted. Know that there will be a decisive confrontation with the corrupt without any consideration." He mentioned, "I have historically fought against corruption and corrupt individuals, and my opinion remains the same today; in the issue of currency and coins, if there had been a confrontation with corruption, the way for corruption would have been closed."