Valiati: Obama's Commitment on Sanctions Must Be Written to Avoid Future Deceit

Ali Akbar Velayati, the international affairs advisor to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, stated that in his view, due to the "extreme dishonesty and broken promises," the U.S. commitment to lift sanctions against Iran "must be in writing to prevent future deceit." In an interview with the magazine Mosalas published on Thursday, December 5, he responded to the question of whether the statement issued by Mr. Obama regarding Iran's sanctions is sufficient and needs to be something else, saying, "This needs to be examined." Velayati emphasized that, as far as he knows, Mr. Obama's commitment to lifting the sanctions must be documented to avoid future deceit. He explained that on our side, we are practically fulfilling our obligations by dismantling centrifuges, transferring enriched materials to another country, and receiving yellowcake in return, while the other side is not taking any action to lift the sanctions. At the very least, they should commit publicly to being obligated internationally, so that if they later backtrack, it is clear they are condemned in the eyes of global public opinion. He pointed out that Iran's assistance to the U.S. in Afghanistan, followed by the labeling of Iran as part of the "axis of evil," is an example of the "extreme dishonesty and broken promises" by the U.S. towards Iran, thus underscoring the need for a written commitment from the U.S. When pressed by the reporter on whether this commitment is different from the statement, he said that the relevant authorities designated by the leadership should decide on this matter. He added that what he infers should be documented, but the examination of whether this is the case or not is the responsibility of a committee that should oversee it. In a letter written by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, regarding the implementation of the nuclear agreement (JCPOA) to Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, it was stated that "since Iran's acceptance of negotiations was fundamentally aimed at lifting the oppressive sanctions and its implementation in the JCPOA is conditional upon Iran's actions, strong and sufficient guarantees must be prepared to prevent violations by the opposing parties." Khamenei noted that one of these guarantees is the "written declaration of the President of the United States and the European Union regarding the lifting of sanctions" and emphasized that it must be explicitly stated in the declaration of the European Union and the U.S. President that these sanctions are completely lifted. According to the Supreme Leader, "Any statement indicating that the structure of sanctions will remain is tantamount to a violation of the JCPOA." Barack Obama, the President of the United States, instructed his government on October 18 to lift sanctions against Iran on the "day of the implementation of the nuclear agreement." According to the comprehensive nuclear agreement reached between Iran and world powers, the day of implementation will be the day the International Atomic Energy Agency confirms that the Islamic Republic has fulfilled its commitments regarding the reduction of the level and amount of uranium enrichment, the reduction of its enriched materials, and changes to the Arak heavy water facility. In that letter, the Supreme Leader also considered the "action regarding the renovation" of the Arak heavy water plant and the "exchange of existing enriched uranium for yellowcake with a foreign government" to be executable only on the condition that the IAEA announces the closure of the current and past PMD issues. Meanwhile, Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the IAEA, in his latest statement, said that the issue of possible military dimensions "is not something that can be answered with a simple yes or no," and the agency's report on Iran's nuclear program "will not be black and white." He also stated that the agency's report regarding the possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program or PMD will be based on facts, and the decision on this matter is up to the agency's Board of Governors. Hours before the director general's remarks, Abbas Araghchi, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, warned the 1+5 group that "if a window remains open in the PMD case," it would mean that "the JCPOA will be halted, and we will resume our nuclear activities."