Parliament Representatives Approve Urgent Proposal for Implementation of JCPOA

The Islamic Consultative Assembly voted urgently on a proposal that allows the Iranian government to implement the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the nuclear agreement with world powers, "within the framework of the Supreme National Security Council's resolutions" and on the condition of "observing 9 provisions and obligations." This proposal, named "Proportional and Reciprocal Action of the Islamic Republic Government in Implementing the JCPOA," was initially proposed with two urgencies but was accepted with 168 votes in favor, 57 against, and 9 abstentions out of a total of 247 votes. The approval of this urgency comes as the special committee reviewing the nuclear agreement in the Islamic Consultative Assembly stated that "after hearing the negotiators' opinions, reviewing texts, and summarizing multiple views, it has not reached the assessment that the concept of lifting sanctions means the dismantling of the legal infrastructure of sanctions in the JCPOA." The report published on Sunday, October 12, in Iranian media, including Fars News Agency, noted that "except in very few and insignificant cases, in all instances, sanctions have been suspended or halted, and their legal infrastructure remains intact," which does not "fulfill Iran's inherent goal from the negotiations." The proposal was read in the open session of the parliament as a technical document of the legislative body after more than 40 days since the special committee began its activities and is set to be referred for further review to the National Security Committee of the parliament. Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, mentioned in the open session that the Supreme Leader's opinion emphasizes "consensus and lack of disagreement," adding that in this context, meetings have been held between the two factions of principlists. The parliament has set conditions for the government, including "revising cooperation with the international community in case of any pressure-based actions and threats for any reason, as determined by the Supreme National Security Council, and taking reciprocal actions in case of any non-compliance by the other party regarding the effective lifting of sanctions and the reinstatement of lifted sanctions or imposing new sanctions." The Islamic Consultative Assembly has also emphasized that "the redesign of the Arak heavy water reactor and, if necessary, the exchange of enriched reserves should be contingent upon the conclusion of definitive and reliable replacement contracts and assurance of their implementation." Another condition of this proposal is that "the Agency's oversight should be conducted within the framework of international regulations and with respect to the national security interests defined by the Supreme National Security Council, and the government must ensure complete protection of classified secrets and information, especially in military and security areas during the implementation of the JCPOA and thereafter." The Islamic Consultative Assembly has stressed that "the level of cooperation with the Agency is contingent upon the necessary precautions to ensure this by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Furthermore, no oversight access by the Agency to military sites and individuals is permitted under the pretext of the JCPOA unless such cases are separately approved in detail by the Supreme National Security Council." The proposal requests that various government agencies "consider necessary measures to ensure that the implementation of the JCPOA does not allow for any opportunism or exploitation within the country by the U.S. and other foreign governments and does not provide an opportunity for political, economic, cultural, and security infiltration or exploitation by global arrogance." Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, Aladdin Boroujerdi, the head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, and Ahmad Tavakoli, a representative from Tehran, spoke in favor of the two urgencies of this proposal, while Hamid Rasai, a representative from Tehran, and Hossein Ali Haji Deligani, a representative from Shahin Shahr, opposed the two urgencies in the open session. In a separate report, the special committee reviewing the JCPOA in the Islamic Consultative Assembly also provided its report on this proposal, which generally has a negative perception of the nuclear agreement. It stated that "based on the text of the JCPOA, access to Iran's military facilities has become possible." The special committee emphasized that the nuclear agreement with world powers "has fundamental gaps and weaknesses in military and security areas, which, if not revised regarding inspections of military, defense, and security sites and lack of attention during implementation, will pose problems for the country." Previously, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic warned that he would not allow inspections of Iran's military sites by international inspectors.