Khamenei: Lifting Western Sanctions Should Not Be Conditional on Iran's Commitments

Less than a week before the deadline for a final agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic reiterated a long list of Iran's red lines in these negotiations, stating that the lifting of Western sanctions "should not be contingent upon Iran's commitments." According to the website of the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday, June 23, in a meeting with senior officials of the Islamic Republic: "The lifting of sanctions should not be contingent upon Iran fulfilling its commitments; they should not say you fulfill your commitments and then the agency certifies it for the sanctions to be lifted; we absolutely do not accept this." Khamenei emphasized: "Economic, financial, and banking sanctions, whether related to the Security Council, the U.S. Congress, or the U.S. government, must be lifted immediately upon signing the agreement, and the rest of the sanctions should also be removed in reasonable intervals." He stated that "the implementation of the lifting of sanctions must correspond with the implementation of Iran's commitments," adding: "We oppose linking the implementation of the other party's commitments to the agency's report because the agency has repeatedly proven that it is not independent and fair, so we are skeptical of it." Khamenei stressed: "They say the agency must be assured; what an unreasonable statement this is! How can it be assured unless it inspects every inch of this land?" Referring to other red lines of Iran in nuclear negotiations, he said: "Contrary to the insistence of the Americans, we do not accept long-term restrictions of 10 or 12 years, and we have informed them of the acceptable duration of restrictions." Reuters reported on June 18, citing Iranian and Western officials, that despite existing differences, it seems the likelihood of both sides reaching a comprehensive and final agreement to limit the Islamic Republic's nuclear program for at least 10 years, in exchange for easing sanctions against Iran, has increased. Khamenei added: "The Americans present a complex, multi-layered, and bizarre formula regarding sanctions, from which it is unclear what will come out, but we clearly state our demands." He also reiterated that "unconventional inspections, inquiries from Iranian personalities, and inspections of military sites" are among Iran's other "nuclear red lines." In recent months, the issue of access to Iran's military sites based on the Additional Protocol of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and interviews with Iranian nuclear scientists to resolve "remaining issues" between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has led to a wave of confrontations between the nuclear negotiating team and their opponents in Iran. Ayatollah Khamenei has emphasized that Iran will not allow inspections of military sites, but the IAEA, U.S. officials, and France have noted that the final nuclear agreement with Iran must allow for visits to its military sites. On Tuesday, despite the government's opposition, the parliament approved the details of a plan known as the "Obligation of the Government to Preserve Nuclear Achievements." According to the representatives' resolution, the IAEA is "authorized to conduct conventional monitoring" of Iran's nuclear sites within the framework of the safeguards agreement. If this plan is finally approved, access to military, security, and sensitive non-nuclear sites, documents, and scientists will be prohibited, and the resolutions of the Supreme National Security Council must be observed. In another part of his remarks, the Supreme Leader stated that what he says in public sessions is "exactly" the same issues he discusses in private meetings with the President and other relevant officials. He added: "Therefore, this incorrect propaganda line that some official red lines have been overlooked in private meetings is false and a lie." Khamenei stated that the Iranian negotiating team "honestly expresses and pursues its positions with courage," but he also said that "they may make mistakes in judgment and action, but they are faithful and zealous." The Supreme Leader further emphasized that he does not oppose criticism of the Iranian nuclear negotiating team and considers it "necessary and helpful." He added: "However, it is a reality that criticizing is easier than acting because it is easy to see the faults of the other side, but understanding its difficulties and concerns is challenging." Khamenei said: "My statement should not hinder continued criticism, but let us understand that the nuclear team knows some of the issues that are criticized, but some necessities lead them to certain actions." The Iranian leader had previously asked the nuclear negotiating team to invite prominent opponents of the Lausanne agreement to hear their views as well. He had also previously requested on the first day of Farvardin that the government and its supporters not insult those who, according to him, "express concern and anxiety." The term "concerned individuals" is used in Iranian media for critics of negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program, most of whom are close to the Steadfast Front. The Supreme Leader's account of "America's request for negotiations with Iran" also mentioned that the issue of Iran negotiating with the U.S. "relates to the previous administration and to sending a mediator to Tehran to request negotiations." Khamenei said: "At that time, a respected person from the region came to meet us as a mediator and explicitly said that the President of the United States had asked him to come to Tehran and present the Americans' request for negotiations." It seems that the Supreme Leader is referring to Oman, which has acted as a mediator in various cases over the years. He added: "The Americans, through this mediator, said they wanted to resolve the nuclear issue while recognizing Iran as a nuclear power and lift the sanctions within six months; however, we told that mediator that we do not trust the Americans and their words, but at the insistence of that mediator, we agreed to try this issue once more, and the negotiations began." Khamenei emphasized: "During the negotiations, the Americans turned the promised six months for lifting sanctions into one year and then prolonged the negotiations with repeated demands and even threatened with more sanctions and spoke of military action both on and off the table." Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, had previously spoken in May about "the high need of the U.S. government for the current negotiations" and added: "They are in dire need of presenting a significant point in their record, to say 'we brought Iran to the negotiating table and imposed some issues on it.'" The absence of Hashemi and the presence of Ahmadinejad in the meeting of senior officials of the Islamic Republic with the Iranian leader was noted. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, head of the Expediency Discernment Council of Iran, was absent. Meanwhile, Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, the first deputy of the Assembly of Experts, was seated in this meeting after Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, and before Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Parliament. This was the first meeting of the leaders of the Islamic Republic with the Supreme Leader after the final sentence of Mehdi Hashemi, the son of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, was announced. Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesman for the judiciary, announced that Mehdi Hashemi's ten-year prison sentence is in the prosecutor's office and is in the execution phase.