Ayatollah Khamenei vows no change in US and Israel relations
Iran’s supreme leader and ultimate decision maker Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed on Saturday that there would be no change in the country’s hostile relations with the US or its anti-Israel approach in regional policies, regardless of the fate of the breakthrough nuclear deal with world powers.
In a move clearly intended to appease hardliners — his main popular base who feel demoralised with the compromises Iran has made in the nuclear agreement — he highlighted Iran’s achievements such as retaining around 6,000 centrifuges.
Iran and major world powers — US, UK, France, Russia, China and Germany — made one of the most significant diplomatic breakthroughs of the post-cold war era last Tuesday reversing economic isolation for the Islamic republic in return for limits on its nuclear programme.
“Whether the agreement is approved [by the US Congress and Iran’s parliament] or not, we will not stop backing our friends in the region including the oppressed nations of Palestine, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Bahrain and Lebanon who will continue to enjoy our support,” the Ayatollah said in a speech to mark the end of holy fasting month of Ramadan. “Our policies against the US will not change.”
He said that holding nuclear negotiations with the US had been justified by reasons of “expediency” but that there could be no similar talks on crises in the Middle East or mutual relations that have been severed for more than three decades.
Although Iran’s hardliners are largely quiet over the nuclear agreement, they are upset with compromises the Islamic regime has made during talks with the “Great Satan” — the US — which they consider the country’s arch enemy.
Ayatollah Khamenei assured his supporters that he had not bowed to US pressure.
“Five US presidents since the revolution have wished to see Iran submit to them but they either died with those dreams or are lost [in US politics],” he said. “You [President Barack Obama] will also fail to materialise this dream of making Iran bow.”
The Islamic regime believes the US has pursued an unspoken policy of regime change since the 1979 Islamic revolution and continues to do so by provoking domestic dissent.
“No exploitation of the [nuclear] agreement will be allowed,” Ayatollah Khamenei said, in comments which echo his concerns about Iran’s reformist opposition feeling emboldened to demand more political freedom after the deal.
The supreme leader is, however, a strong supporter of the nuclear accord and for the third time since Tuesday thanked centrist president Hassan Rouhani and the nuclear negotiating team led by foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
He has not commented on the details of the deal but keeps the route open for Iran’s retaliation if the US Congress blocks the agreement. He reiterated that the agreement should be thoroughly studied and go through legal channels.
The US Congress must vote on the deal within two months following a measure passed this year to give the legislature a greater say in the landmark agreement. Mr Obama has vowed to veto any effort by Congress to block the agreement. Opponents would need to ensure a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate to overcome the threat of a veto.
Should that happen, Iran’s legislative body — dominated by conservative forces — is expected to voice its opposition to Iran’s compromises and respond to what would be seen as sabotage by the Congress.
Iranian analysts think it unlikely that any political or military faction would be able to intervene to stop implementation of the agreement thanks to the strong support Ayatollah Khamenei has thrown behind the agreement which the country’s economy direly needs.
Under the deal, by early 2016 all the major economic sanctions against Iran would be lifted, breathing life into its financial system and energy market.
Sanctions relief will be triggered by Iran’s verified compliance with measures to wind back its nuclear programme and introduce close international monitoring.
“Thanks to God’s blessings, I can tell the nation that the Islamic Republic of Iran is strong and powerful and is getting stronger day by day,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
“We do not welcome any war and will not embark on a war but in case there is a war the one who has to leave the scene with shame is the aggressive US.”