Zarif Criticizes the Transformation of JCPOA into a 'Hot Topic' in Society

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, criticized the transformation of foreign policy issues into a 'hot topic' in Iranian society, attributing it to the 'destruction' against the nuclear team. In an exclusive interview with the Entekhab website on Sunday, February 12, Zarif stated, 'The discussion of the JCPOA has become a hot topic in society, and it is never good for foreign policy issues to become a hot topic in society, but unfortunately, this has happened.' He attributed this issue to the 'concerns' of some within Iran and their perception of 'resistance,' adding, 'Some friends inside viewed resistance as not engaging rather than engaging... thus creating concerns and internal political considerations.' According to the Iranian Foreign Minister, 'destruction' within had an impact on negotiations, and 'sometimes foreigners received wrong messages. Because our friends in destruction went beyond a limit and pretended that the negotiating team was one that had no affiliation with resistance, had no connection to the demands of the people, and thus falsely and mistakenly introduced a group to the foreign negotiator that would definitely harm interests.' Zarif added, 'For example, the action taken at the last stage to disclose our secret and confidential discussions in a private meeting of the commission greatly lowered my colleagues' hands in subsequent negotiations. After all, a series of statements had been published in my name that were directly contrary to what my colleagues were supposed to present in negotiations, and this atmosphere was heavy for us in that regard.' In another part of this conversation, Zarif criticized conservatives who, according to him, were damaging the negotiation process with their disclosures and destruction. In response to remarks from some principlists claiming he admitted to making a 'mistake' regarding the JCPOA in a private meeting of the National Security Commission, he said, 'I did not say I made a mistake in the JCPOA negotiations or in other matters, but rather about a public statement, I said this statement of mine was incorrect and a mistake. It seems that our friends were very pleased to hear the word mistake.' The Iranian Foreign Minister also stated on January 25 that he is not ashamed of the JCPOA and takes pride in it, but believes it should not be brought up every day. Previously, Javad Karimi Qodousi, a member of parliament, claimed that Zarif had accepted responsibility for a 'mistake' regarding the JCPOA in a session of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission. However, this was denied by the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, who described it as 'completely incorrect, distorted, and selective.' The Iranian Foreign Ministry also issued a statement accusing Qodousi of 'disclosing confidential discussions and negotiation tactics of the negotiating team.' In this regard, the Iranian Foreign Minister told the Entekhab news site, 'I still believe that the statements I made in the commission were confidential... not confidential from the people, but confidential from the other side. That is, the other side should not know your strategy.' He added, 'When our friends went to negotiate, [the other side] claimed that your foreign minister said this in the meeting, and why do you say the matter is something else? This indicates that this movement harms our work in negotiations, and what gets harmed is national interests.' Mohammad Javad Zarif expressed hope that the critical remarks from Saeed Jalili, Iran's former chief nuclear negotiator, regarding the JCPOA and the negotiation process were 'out of concern' and said, 'I certainly do not agree with him, and the policies he pursued are not only ones I do not agree with, but a large part of our society does not agree with either; otherwise, they would have voted for him.' Saeed Jalili, representative of the Supreme Leader in the Supreme National Security Council, accused a group in Iran on February 9 of trying to 'scare' the people with 'sanction phobia.' He referred to this group as 'merchants of sanction phobia.' According to Mehr News Agency, Jalili stated in a speech to a group of people in Alborz province that these individuals 'are waiting for the enemy to impose sanctions, and they also scare the people about sanctions.' The Iranian Foreign Minister indicated that if the previous nuclear negotiation team's process continued, 'the government would certainly find solutions and policies. As it was, during that time out of necessity, they found solutions, but those solutions were opaque and indirect, also costly and corrupting.' The Iranian Foreign Minister continued, 'That is, it created massive corruption and also, at a very high cost, the transfer of money [from oil sales] took place, which we still do not have a clear picture of how much we suffered.' According to Zarif, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, also did not comment on the details of the nuclear negotiations and only specified the general lines. However, he stated that the nuclear team reported all the details to the Supreme Leader, but 'the dignity of the leadership was not to enter those details.' In this interview, the Iranian Foreign Minister did not refer to the Supreme Leader's opinion on the JCPOA. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has repeatedly criticized the Vienna nuclear agreement despite approving it. For instance, on July 11, he protested the failure to lift sanctions against Iran 'all at once,' calling the Vienna nuclear agreement 'a fruitless experience' of negotiations with the United States. In this context, several supporters of the Supreme Leader have repeatedly criticized the JCPOA. Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, stated on April 5 that the Vienna nuclear agreement 'is never a document of honor' and that the people 'reluctantly' accepted it. Meanwhile, Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, his government members, and their supporters have rejected criticisms of the nuclear agreement. In this regard, Rouhani emphasized on July 11 that the Vienna nuclear agreement brought 'dignity' to Iran, stating that during the sanctions, 'our hands were always stretched out to others, and sanctions did not bring us dignity.' However, several close associates of the Supreme Leader, including Ayatollah Kazem Sedighi, the Imam of Tehran, have referred to Western sanctions against Iran as a 'blessing' and criticized Iran's contracts with foreign countries after the Vienna nuclear agreement.