Iranian Lawmaker Says Talks Held With US, But No Quick Deals
A conservative Iranian lawmaker has confirmed recent reports that Washington held direct talks with Tehran, although he said there will be no deal in the near future.
A conservative Iranian lawmaker has confirmed recent reports that Washington held direct talks with Tehran, although he said there will be no deal in the near future.
“Despite some negotiations in New York, there is no impending agreement soon because of US obstructions,” Mojataba Tavangar tweeted on Saturday.
Tavangar is a ‘principlist’ Iranian politician, which means he can be considered a hardliner, although on some issues he has exhibited flexibility in the past. Unlike many other hardliners dominating the parliament, Tavangar is a more educated politician having spent years as a researcher.
“America is trying to get more concessions from Iran in nuclear matters, in exchange for releasing frozen funds, a policy violating the law and in contradiction to Iran’s interests,” Tavangar added.
Iran International reported in January that US special envoy for Iran, Robert Malley had held three meetings with Iran’s UN ambassador Saeed Iravani in New York in the closing weeks of 2022. The State Department never denied this report, and said Washington had many channels to relay messages to Tehran.
The reports of more meetings resurfaced in June, when the Financial Times and others reported that meetings have taken place in New York and perhaps in Oman, which has long acted as a mediator between Tehran and Washington.
The State Department did not directly deny the latest reports either. Asked about the media reports, deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said, “I don’t have anything to announce on this front.”
He added, “As you’ve heard me say previously, we have the means to communicate with Iran and deliver messages to them that are in America’s interest to do so. We’re not going to detail the contents of those messages or the means of those deliveries. I don’t have anything additional to add there.” He refused to comment further.
The Iranian lawmaker Tavangar in his tweet also claimed that the United States is pushing Iran toward direct talks, and even regarding American prisoners (hostages) in Iran is not negotiating seriously. He described media reports about secret talks and progress toward a deal as “media hype” saying that Washington’s goal is to highlight Iran’s economic problems and inflict “a shock” on the market.
Tavangar’s statements could well be an indirect message by the regime to its domestic audience, as the news about a possible deal has led to some premature hopes. The Iranian rial has risen against the US dollar in the past week, and any negative diplomatic news could push the battered currency toward a steep fall.
It is worth noting that many media outlets in Tehran, under tight government control, widely reported on Tavangar’s tweet.
Iran International also reported May 27, that talks on the release of Tehran’s frozen assets could result in a deal soon, based on a source with direct knowledge of the talks. Apparently, the talks were focused on funds held in Iraq and South Korea. The money in Iraqi banks could be as much as $10 billion or more by most recent estimates mentioned by Iranian officials. Iraq imports natural gas and electricity from Iran but is barred by US sanctions to make dollar transfers to Tehran.
The funds in South Korea could be exchanged for the release of three US dual nationals held hostage in Iran.
ILNA news website in Tehran reported Saturday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the issue of the funds blocked in Iraq with his Iraqi counterpart during his recent visit to Saudi Arabia. Apparently Baghdad is urging Washington to find a solution, the website said.
Zarif who was the main speaker at a five-hour long audio discussion on the social media app Club House earlier this week, defended his diplomatic approach of negotiations to reduce Western pressure on Iran.
The former foreign minister has long been a target of Iran’s hardliners as the supposed architect of the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal and allegedly as a man inclined to forge better ties with the West. But in June these attacks intensified as Zarif began to tweet after a long silence.
The Raisi administration-owned daily Iran newspaper wrote Thursday that former Foreign Minister Zarif and former President Hassan Rouhani's foreign policy was nothing more than "begging the West for attention." The daily also charged that their policies were "marked by ignorance, confusion and naivety."
The daily added that Zarif and Rouhani's policies made the Iran's situation and its ties with other countries more complicated than ever. However, the newspaper did not specify its accusations with examples.
The daily wrote that their priority was redefining Iran's relations with the world, but their vision was limited to Europe and the United States. The statement was, of course, mindless of the fact that Iran's 25-year cooperation contract with China was signed under Rouhani with Zarif.
Iran daily also charged that Zarif's foreign policy was limited to furthering the talks over Iran's nuclear program. The daily further charged that Iran's ties with its neighbors were downgraded under President Rouhani.
In fact, it was Iran’s aggressive regional political and military policies and interventions in Syria and Yemen that soured it ties with Sunni Arab states. These policies were part of a grand strategy devised or at least approved by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and not at the presidential level.
While under attack from the conservative camp Zarif said on Thursday that he has no plans whatsoever for the elections and added that he is not the kind of man who would run for the parliament, Zarif said that the controversy over his Clubhouse presence is rooted in the conservative's fear of his possible plans to run for President in 2025. He added that he has no plan to run for the post or to campaign for other politicians.
In the meantime, the editor of Jomhouri Eslami newspaper, Masih Mohajeri suggested that Zarif and his predecessor at the foreign ministry, Ali Akbar Salehi who later played a part in forging the 2015 JCPOA nuclear agreement, should take part in an open debate with the leading hardliners aligned with the current government who have been obstructing the nuclear talks for many years.
Mohajeri wrote that Iranians have a right to know what has happened to the talks and the nuclear program and such a debate can shed light on many ambiguities and show clearly who is right and who is lying about the other sides foreign, economic and domestic policies.
Also defending Zarif on Thursday was the centrist daily Ham Mihan, which attacked the Raisi administration and wrote that the current government portrays a disparaging image of its predecessor and characterizes its performance as "treasonous", while making a lot of fuss about its own meager achievements.
Ham Mihan wrote that the ruling politicians take advantage of the silence of the officials of the previous government and pass unilateral judgements about the Rouhani administration's track record without giving him and his aides a chance to freely respond to the accusations. Ham Miham further lashed out at the Raisi administration for lying about its "achievements" and not tolerating any criticism. The daily claimed that Raisi and his supporters hold more grudges against their political rivals than foreign enemies.
Foreign Policy expert Ghasem Mohebali defended Zarif by saying that what he said showed the difference between two approaches to national interests and the nuclear talks, adding that Zarif's approach was an example of efficiency while the new government's track record has all the signs of inefficiency.
Expediency Council member, moderate conservative politician Mohammad Sadr, on the other hand, defended Zarif and praised his performance regarding the nuclear deal, and attacked Raisi: "I have told Raisi that he is personally responsible for the economic problems resulting from the inconclusive situation of the nuclear talks under his government."
He said the government fails to create jobs which forces many to engage in small criminal activities only to survive, and then hanged when they are caught.
In his sermon the outspoken Mowlavi (title for Sunni cleric) told his congregation in Zahedan, capital of southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan Province, that lack of jobs in his province and some other impoverished areas is the prime reason people are driven to smuggling fuel, minor drug-related offences, or drug trafficking.
In Iran gasoline and especially diesel are extremely cheap (around 10 US cents per gallon) due to heavy government subsidization. This leads to smuggling fuel to neighboring countries such as Pakistan which has long borders with Sistan-Baluchestan.
Many of these individuals, the cleric said, end up in prison or are even executed for committing crimes that involve profiting as little as 5 million rials ($10).
“People have to do all sorts of things just to earn their bread,” he told his congregation who took to the streets after the prayers for the 36th consecutive week to chant anti-government slogans.
Haal Vsh, a website dedicated to human rights and events in Iran’s Baluchestan, reported Friday that security forces cracked down on young Baluchis in various areas of Zahedan after the protests and arrested many.
The Sunni cleric who has proven to be the unofficial voice of the country’s Sunni population has become popular even among Shiites for standing up to the regime and delivering fiery speeches every week since September when the Women, Life, Freedom protests spread across the country.
In his sermon Abdolhamid also brought up the issue of justice for the victims of what has come to be known as the Bloody Friday of Zahedan. On September 30, 2022, security forces opened fire on civilian anti-government protesters killing more than 93 protesters including children and onlookers in Zahedan after Friday prayers.
“Carrying out justice would have brought tranquility and peace [to the locals],” he said. The government has not taken action against those security forces who opened fire on September 30.
“You never remedied our troubles or asked us about what gave us pain,” Abdolhamid said, adding that calm will not be established unless the complaints of workers, teachers, civil servants and pensioners are addressed and remedied.
As Sunni Muslims, Baluch citizens are both an ethnic and religious minority. Estimates of the Iranian Baluch population range from 1.5 to 2 million people. The Baluch community – along with the Kurds -- has always been among the most persecuted minorities and has the largest number of people executed in the country.
Most Baluchis are executed over drug-related charges, but activists say their trials lack due process and poverty-stricken drug mules are often executed without having had proper legal representation.
According to Haal Vsh, the execution of Baluch citizens has increased significantly since last year’s nation-wide protests. It said in a recent report that 182 people were executed in 23 prisons across Iran in the past year of which81% were drug-related.