Zarif Softens Critique of ‘Strategic’ Law After Khamenei Endorsement

FILE PHOTO: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks during a news conference, March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks during a news conference, March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily/File Photo
TT

Zarif Softens Critique of ‘Strategic’ Law After Khamenei Endorsement

FILE PHOTO: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks during a news conference, March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks during a news conference, March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily/File Photo

Former Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has announced that President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian’s government is ready to negotiate to restore the 2015 nuclear deal.
This comes alongside adhering to the “Strategic Action Plan to Lift US Sanctions and Protect Iranian Nation’s Interests,” which led Iran to suspend many of its nuclear commitments.
Zarif, appointed by Pezeshkian to lead a committee for selecting candidates for 19 key government positions, had previously criticized the “Strategic Action Plan.” However, he has now stated that the law is binding and must be followed, calling his earlier stance “personal.”
In a recent message to the UN, Zarif held the US and three European countries accountable for their failures under the deal, which he says harmed the Iranian people and triggered legislative reactions.
Zarif emphasized that it is in these countries’ interest to correct their behavior and allow Iran to benefit from the agreement. He added that Iran has taken compensatory actions within its rights under the deal.
Despite this, Zarif stressed that Pezeshkian’s administration is open to good faith negotiations based on the nuclear agreement and Iranian laws to ensure both sides uphold the deal.
Zarif’s change of position seems to align with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s support for the 2020 law.
Khamenei has urged parliamentarians to approve Pezeshkian’s government and avoid disputes, stressing the need for a unified stance on major issues.
Pezeshkian had previously expressed his intention to review and amend the law with parliament.
Zarif had criticized the law for blocking US President Joe Biden’s return to the nuclear deal and suggested that Iranian oil sales have been facilitated by the Biden administration’s flexibility.
He also predicted that if Republican candidate Donald Trump wins the November elections, he might return to a maximum pressure strategy.
Khamenei’s recent reaffirmation of support for the law, which mandates government compliance and could lead to legal action against non-compliant officials, is the first since the elections.
In a related development, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Reza Najafi said indirect negotiations with the US, mediated by Oman, are ongoing. However, he noted that the US is not ready for serious talks on lifting sanctions due to its internal issues.
Najafi highlighted that Pezeshkian’s positions suggest negotiations will continue, but the US needs to be ready for serious discussions, and the future US administration’s policy will be crucial. He reaffirmed Iran’s readiness to continue talks.



China Announces Joint Naval, Air Drills with Russia 

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese and Russian warships take part in a joint naval drills in the East China Sea, Dec. 27, 2022. (Xu Wei/Xinhua via AP, File)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese and Russian warships take part in a joint naval drills in the East China Sea, Dec. 27, 2022. (Xu Wei/Xinhua via AP, File)
TT

China Announces Joint Naval, Air Drills with Russia 

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese and Russian warships take part in a joint naval drills in the East China Sea, Dec. 27, 2022. (Xu Wei/Xinhua via AP, File)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese and Russian warships take part in a joint naval drills in the East China Sea, Dec. 27, 2022. (Xu Wei/Xinhua via AP, File)

China’s Defense Ministry on Monday announced joint naval and air drills with Russia starting this month, underscoring the closeness between their militaries as Russia presses its grinding invasion of Ukraine.

The ministry said the “Northern United-2024” exercises would take place in the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk farther north, but gave no details.

It said the naval and air drills aimed to improve strategic cooperation between the two countries and “strengthen their ability to jointly deal with security threats.”

The notice also said the two navies would cruise together in the Pacific, the fifth time they have done so, and together take part in Russia’s “Great Ocean-24” exercise. No details were given.

China has refused to criticize Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now in its third year, and blamed the US and NATO for provoking President Vladimir Putin.

While China has not directly provided Russia with arms, it has become a crucial economic lifeline as a top customer for Russian oil and gas as well as a supplier of electronics and other items with both civilian and military uses.

Russia and China, along with other US critics such as Iran, have aligned their foreign policies to challenge Western-led liberal democratic order. With joint exercises, Russia has sought Chinese help in achieving its long-cherished aim of becoming a Pacific power, while Moscow has backed China's territorial claims in the South China Sea and elsewhere.

That has increasingly included the 180-kilometer (110-mile) wide Taiwan Strait that divides mainland China from the self-governing island democracy that Beijing considers its own territory and threatens to invade.

Based on that claim, the Taiwan Strait is Chinese. Though it is not opposed to navigation by others through one of the world's most heavily trafficked sea ways, China is “firmly opposed to provocations by countries that jeopardize China’s sovereignty and security under the banner of freedom of navigation,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily briefing on Friday.

Mao was responding to a report that a pair of German navy ships were to pass through the strait this month for the first time in more than two decades. The US and virtually every other country, along with Taiwan, considers the strait international waters.