Rafsanjani Warns Against 'Obstruction' in Nuclear Agreement Path

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, on Tuesday, September 30, referred to the impact of Western sanctions against Iran, stating that "we have not mentioned the blows of the past 8 years, and the depth of the matter is much higher than this." According to Rafsanjani's website, the head of Iran's Expediency Discernment Council also warned about the "security consequences" of the actions of Iranian opponents of the Vienna nuclear agreement and the "obstruction" in the path of this agreement, referring to the "critical" conditions of the region and neighboring countries. He emphasized that the government of Hassan Rouhani entered the "forbidden area" of nuclear negotiations with "sacrifice and courage" and succeeded in this path. Additionally, according to an audio file released by the state news agency IRNA, Rafsanjani noted the presence of Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, at the parliamentary commission on the JCPOA, saying, "We see how serious they are." He also pointed out that the Western side is in no hurry to lift sanctions, adding: "Therefore, we must burn ourselves, but some individuals under the name of revolution and Islam are obstructing." The head of the Expediency Discernment Council also referred to UN Security Council Resolution 2231 in support of the nuclear agreement between Iran and the 5+1 group, stating that with the issuance of this resolution, "within half an hour, six dangerous resolutions that, if they existed, would have led to war" were lifted from "over Iran." According to Rafsanjani, despite this, some "close their eyes and open their mouths and say whatever they want, thinking they are struggling in the way of God." On Thursday, September 26, Rafsanjani also described Iranian opponents of the nuclear agreement as "hardliners against national interests and the people" and predicted that "the people will teach a big lesson to the extremists with a presence similar to the 92 elections." Some officials from Hassan Rouhani's government, including Akbar Turkan, a senior advisor to the President of Iran, have accused the opponents of the Iran-5+1 agreement of "profiting from sanctions." However, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has asked government officials to listen to the statements of the opponents of the nuclear negotiations and not to insult those who express concern about these negotiations. "ISIS has established a base in eastern Iran" Rafsanjani, in another part of his speech, said: "If one day we cannot protect the people, very easily mysterious hands will disrupt our security, and we see today that ISIS has established a base in the east of our country." According to the Tabnak website, he referred to the presence of the "Islamic State" near Iran's western borders, stating that this group had advanced close to Qasr-e Shirin and 35 kilometers from Iran's western borders, but the Islamic Republic threatened that "if you come closer, we will strike," which is why the group's forces remained there. Some Iranian officials, including Mahmoud Alavi, the Minister of Intelligence, have repeatedly stated that the Islamic State group or ISIS has made "significant efforts to operate and create insecurity" in Iran and "including border areas" of the country. Brigadier General Ahmad-Reza Pourdastan, commander of the Army Ground Forces, stated in the parliament on Sunday, June 3, that the so-called "Takfiri and terrorist" forces are near Iran's borders. He reported that last year, members of the Islamic State group had "predicted and prepared ammunition depots and forces in Iran's border provinces to create chaos through assassination and explosions upon their arrival," but Iran has "organized five combat brigades to confront them," and Iranian ground and reconnaissance helicopter forces have gone "up to 40 kilometers into Iraqi territory."