Report from the JCPOA Commission Ready to be Presented to the Plenary

The Vice President of the JCPOA Commission has announced that the report regarding the nuclear agreement is ready, and the Chairman of the National Security Commission of the Parliament has expressed that the Parliament should declare 'red lines' as a necessity without approving or rejecting the JCPOA. Aladdin Boroujerdi, Chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament, stated on a television program on the Arabic-language Islamic Republic network, Al-Alam, that the Parliament should neither approve nor reject the Vienna nuclear agreement. This statement may contradict the remarks of the Vice President of the JCPOA Commission on Tuesday, who believes that the Parliament will approve its opinion on this agreement 'as law'. According to the House of Representatives news agency, affiliated with the Islamic Consultative Assembly, Mansour Haghighatpour, Vice President of the JCPOA Commission, announced this on Tuesday, September 30, after the news of the readiness of the JCPOA Commission's report on the Vienna nuclear agreement. The report, according to him, will be presented to the Parliament 'soon'. Mr. Haghighatpour also stated that the JCPOA Commission does not accept the 'approach' that the Parliament should not reject or accept the nuclear agreement, and if the government does not provide a bill regarding this agreement to the Parliament, representatives will approve the JCPOA 'as law' in the form of a proposal. He also emphasized that the government will be obliged to implement the Vienna nuclear agreement or JCPOA 'with specifications and conditions' approved by the Parliament. Aladdin Boroujerdi had previously stated that the Parliament should only approve 'red lines as a necessity' and allow the government to implement this agreement. He added, 'Of course, this is currently at the stage of discussion and must enter the stage of action within the next few days, and if this idea reaches this stage of action, I think it can gather a majority vote in the Parliament.' According to Mr. Boroujerdi, there are several theories among the representatives of the Parliament, one of which is issuing a statement about the Vienna nuclear agreement. He also stated, 'I think our movement is heading towards a legal resolution' and expressed hope that 'the JCPOA will pass through the Parliament within a maximum of one week.' The Chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission had previously stated that at the 'end of the review' of the Vienna nuclear agreement, 'a report on viewpoints and solutions for overcoming some challenges' will be presented. According to a law titled 'Obligation of the Government to Preserve Achievements and Nuclear Rights', the 'result of negotiations' regarding Iran's nuclear program must be 'presented to the Parliament', and 201 representatives have requested the government to present the Vienna nuclear agreement 'as soon as possible' in the form of a bill. However, the government of Hassan Rouhani has refrained from presenting a bill to the Parliament, and government officials have repeatedly emphasized that this agreement does not require approval from the Parliament. Members of the Iranian negotiating team have also repeatedly stated that the Parliament or the Supreme National Security Council can only approve or reject the Vienna nuclear agreement and cannot change its details. Previously, Mohammad Reza Bahonar, Vice President of the Parliament, had also stated that 'presenting the JCPOA bill to the Parliament does not serve national interests.' In the Iranian Parliament, representatives who support the approval or rejection of the JCPOA in the form of a bill or proposed plan cite the remarks of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, who emphasized on Friday, September 12, that it is not expedient for the Islamic Consultative Assembly to be sidelined from the issue of reviewing the JCPOA, and 'the representatives of the nation' must decide on its rejection or approval. The ceremonial visit, which lasted only a few minutes, of Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to the Parchin site, which had previously been described by Iranian officials as 'ceremonial', was reflected in Mr. Boroujerdi's remarks on Sunday night. Mr. Boroujerdi stated that this visit was conducted following 'extensive media hype from American and Western media' regarding constructions in this area, and Amano 'saw up close that if a bulldozer came there, it was to repair land that had naturally slid due to natural movement.' Meanwhile, according to the Tasnim news agency, Reza Najafi, Iran's representative at the Agency, said that this visit lasted 'only a few minutes' and that Mr. Amano and his deputy 'did not have any equipment, not even a phone.' He also mentioned 'repairing a road damaged by flooding', 'constructing a workers' rest room and a restroom', and building a 'changing room' as recent constructions in Parchin.