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Iran's Araghchi reveals six-member committee led nuclear talks, says he never met Khamenei

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi revealed a six-person subcommittee within the Supreme National Security Council made "on the spot" decisions during nuclear talks.
  • Araghchi stated he has never met Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who has been out of public view since an attack.
  • He explained the committee, including the president and Parliament Speaker, was formed after the "12 Day War" to handle negotiations due to communication difficulties with top leadership.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has disclosed the existence of a six-person subcommittee within the Supreme National Security Council that was responsible for making "on the spot" decisions during the now-defunct Memorandum of Understanding negotiations with the United States. Araghchi made these revelations in an interview with Asriran.

There was a six-member committee consisting of people like the president, Ghalibaf, the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, and myself, who made decisions for the negotiations on the spot, because it was difficult to communicate with the top.

— Abbas Araghchi, Iranian Foreign MinisterExplaining the structure and function of the committee that made decisions during nuclear negotiations.

Adding to the intrigue surrounding Iran's leadership, Araghchi admitted that he has never met Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. Khamenei has not been seen publicly since being injured in an attack that also killed his predecessor and father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Araghchi detailed the composition of the decision-making committee, which reportedly includes the Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, SNSC Secretary Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, himself, and two other unnamed individuals. He explained that this committee was formed after the "12 Day War" and initially focused on nuclear matters before evolving into a negotiating body.

I have not seen Mr. Mojtaba so far, and I don't think anyone else has seen him in the current era, except for a few people.

— Abbas Araghchi, Iranian Foreign MinisterAddressing the absence and public visibility of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.

The foreign minister further stated that communication with the highest levels of leadership was difficult, necessitating the committee's formation to make timely decisions. He also commented on the Supreme Leader's absence, noting that Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen by many, with final decisions historically resting with the Assembly of Experts.

All discussions related to the negotiations took place in this committee, and its approvals followed exactly the same procedure as those of the Supreme National Security Council.

— Abbas Araghchi, Iranian Foreign MinisterDescribing the authority and procedural adherence of the six-member committee.
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Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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