Rafsanjani: There May Be a Distinction Between Obama's Actions in the JCPOA and America's Previous Behavior

The head of Iran's Expediency Council, Hashemi Rafsanjani, stated in a detailed interview with his website that there is a possibility of a distinction between Obama's administration's actions regarding the JCPOA and what he referred to as America's historical injustices. He claimed that Iran has benefited more from the JCPOA than the Western side. In the interview published on Sunday, September 14, he announced that the Supreme Leader was determined to resolve the nuclear issue before the current administration and had consulted with him prior to negotiations with the Americans in Oman. He also mentioned that if necessary, Iran should extend a hand to Saudi Arabia to resolve issues between the two countries. In response to a question about the possibility of Iran facing a fate similar to Venezuela if past policies continue, he stated that it was clear and somewhat documented that the Western policy was to bring Iran to a situation of 'oil for food.' He emphasized that the Islamic Republic was not 'desperate,' but was struggling and its future was 'at risk.' According to Rafsanjani, it was even predicted that if the nuclear negotiations failed, 'war would start.' However, he noted that these were things that were communicated to them and documents that reached them from various sources, leading them to feel this way. President Hassan Rouhani and members of his government have repeatedly stated that the nuclear agreement has lifted the shadow of war from Iran. Rafsanjani expressed the opinion that there is a 'possibility of distinction' between Obama's actions regarding the nuclear agreement and America's historical injustices, but noted that the reasons for why this distinction is not made is 'another discussion.' He added that 'America is human too, they have interests, and they want us to work with them... They fear that if we do not work with them, Russia, China, and India will have sufficient opportunities to work when there are no sanctions. They calculate all of this. I think it is possible for them to compensate.' In another part of the interview, he remarked that the Vienna nuclear agreement is 'more beneficial to Iran than to the Western side' and added that 'with all this commotion in the country and the unnecessary psychological warfare they have started, we are having trouble attracting investment and technology.' Rafsanjani also accused the nuclear negotiation team during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's administration of only 'shouting slogans' during negotiations, adding that 'either they were not capable or they did not want to reach a conclusion.' Previously, the Iranian Foreign Ministry had reported to the parliament regarding the implementation of the Vienna nuclear agreement that 'some brokers who have profited greatly from the sanctions' have used 'every opportunity to undermine and destroy the post-JCPOA conditions, using and even exacerbating domestic political atmospheres.' Regarding the Oman negotiations, Rafsanjani mentioned that 'the leadership consulted with me as well.' The reporter from Rafsanjani's website quoted the Supreme Leader as saying, according to hearsay, that Rafsanjani 'has moved even ahead of the government in the nuclear discussions and negotiations.' He implicitly confirmed this quote, stating that 'I reached this conclusion through calculation. I did not have special information to this extent.' According to Rafsanjani, the Western side had concluded before the Vienna nuclear agreement that Iran would reach a nuclear bomb and knew that if Iran achieved a bomb, it would be out of their control and that Iran also has missiles. He added that based on his calculations, he concluded that the Western side is inclined to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue and not let it remain in a deadlock. Rafsanjani also referred to the Supreme Leader's permission for negotiations with American officials in Oman during the previous administration, stating that 'the leadership had allowed it, they consulted with me beforehand, and we started negotiations.' He added that the U.S. was unwilling to give Iran concessions in those negotiations, and they were 'fruitless and ended.' Previously, Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization during Rouhani's administration and foreign minister during Ahmadinejad's administration, reported that Iran and the U.S. had negotiated several times at the deputy foreign minister level in Oman during the final years of Ahmadinejad's presidency. Salehi also stated in an interview with NBC News that if these secret talks had not taken place, the nuclear agreement would not have been achieved. The Supreme Leader had also mentioned in July 2015 that the issue of negotiations between Iran and the U.S. 'relates to the previous administration and involves sending intermediaries to Tehran to request negotiations.' In this regard, Rafsanjani stated that 'before Mr. Rouhani came, I knew the leadership wanted the issue to be resolved. Ultimately, the leadership's will was behind the matter.' He added that 'despite all the mischief that was happening and the leadership sometimes criticizing the negotiations, they supported these efforts until the end and sometimes even reached a state of glorification.' Officials in Rouhani's government have repeatedly called the Vienna nuclear agreement a 'system decision' and emphasized that this agreement was made with the approval of Ayatollah Khamenei. However, despite approving the Vienna nuclear agreement, the Supreme Leader has repeatedly criticized it. In another part of the interview, Rafsanjani stated that the 'harassment' of opponents diminishes the power of Rouhani's government. He predicted that Rouhani would be elected in the 2017 presidential election and would act 'more boldly' in his next term and take 'a significant step.' Previously, some figures and conservative media had announced that Rouhani's presidency would be limited to one term. Iranian media have mentioned Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Saeed Jalili, Mohammad Reza Bahonar, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, Ezzatollah Zarghami, and Ahmad Tavakoli as potential rivals for Rouhani in the 2017 presidential election. Regarding the possibility of improving relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, Rafsanjani stated: '[This improvement] can happen. If I were president - of course not now, I was president then - I would not see any problem in front of me. When I understood something was beneficial, I would act.' He added, 'Currently, Mr. Rouhani is not in the situation I was in. This is a practical matter, and I think humbling Saudi Arabia is not very difficult. Saudi Arabia also understands that confronting Iran is not beneficial for them.' In response to the question of whether 'we should extend our hand to them again,' he said, 'If necessary, what is the problem? We have done this before. Mr. Zarif has repeatedly said that we are ready to negotiate wherever necessary.' The deterioration in relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia has increased in recent years following conflicts in Syria and Yemen, and the attack on Saudi diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad last December led to the severance of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and several of its allies with Iran.