Regime Mob Leader Accompanies Iranian President During US Visit

During a meeting held on Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Josep Borrell, the EU's Foreign Policy Chief, raised critical concerns regarding EU-Iran bilateral relations and the latest developments concerning the JCPOA nuclear agreement.

Borrell reiterated his call for the immediate release of all EU citizens in Iranian custody. In a statement released on the EU's official website, the bloc emphasized that its stance remains unchanged regarding the deeply troubling human rights situation within Iran.

"Iran must ensure the preservation of fundamental freedoms, as articulated by all 27 EU Member States on the anniversary of Mahsa Amini's tragic death."

Regarding the JCPOA, Borrell stressed the importance of pursuing a path of de-escalation. He urged Iran to reconsider its decision to revoke the official status of around one third of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors in Iran and to enhance its cooperation with the watchdog.

On Saturday, Iran withdrew the designation of several inspectors tasked with verifying activities in Iran under the Non-Proliferation Treaty Safeguards Agreement. Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the IAEA, stated, “This profoundly regrettable decision by Iran is another step in the wrong direction and constitutes an unnecessary blow to an already strained relationship between the IAEA and Iran in the implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement."

Borrell also expressed his strong belief in the necessity of seeking a diplomatic resolution to the Iran nuclear issue within the framework of the JCPOA and once again urged the Iranian government to cease its ongoing military cooperation with Russia in the unlawful war of aggression against Ukraine.

Quoting three regional sources familiar with discussions that Doha has held with Tehran and Washington, the effort is aimed at reaching “understandings” to iron out some differences. The aim is to address slowing Tehran's uranium enrichment alongside more international monitoring, curbing activities of Iran's proxy militias in the region and halting Iran's drone exports, all in return for some waivers on US sanctions on Iranian oil exports, the three sources said.

Officials in Doha said Qatari officials would hold separate meetings with Iranian and US officials on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York this week. One source briefed on the talks told Reuters those meetings would include discussing enrichment and Iranian drones.

If there is progress, Qatar aims to host indirect talks between Tehran and Washington, the source said. Qatar helped forge the hostage release deal with shuttle diplomacy between Iranian and US negotiators staying in separate hotels in Doha. The Biden administration agreed to authorize the release of $6 billion in Iranian funds blocked in South Korea since 2018.

Various media have been long reporting about a potential limited and unwritten agreement after formal talks to revive the 2015 JCPOA failed last year. Speculations in this regard became more frequent since June when the US authorized the release of $2.7 billion blocked in Iraqi banks. The Biden administration has played down any prospect of a wider deal, because according to the law, it must report to the US Congress about any nuclear agreement with Iran.

Republicans and some Democrats are becoming more critical of the Iranian regime and the administration’s apparent secret dealings with Tehran. The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Mahsa Act September 13, which hardened US sanctions against Iran’s ruler Ali Khamenei and President Ebrahim Raisi.

When the US hostages were released earlier this week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken left the door open to diplomacy on the nuclear file, which he described as "perhaps the number one issue of concern", but said nothing was imminent.

"In this moment, we're not engaged on that, but we'll see in the future if there are opportunities," he said in New York, in his response to a question about whether there could be more indirect talks with Iran soon.

Two Iranian insiders said there would be indirect meetings between Tehran and Washington in New York that could pave the way for talks on a nuclear "understanding". They said Iran had never shut the door to nuclear diplomacy.

Another Iranian insider briefed on discussions so far with Qatar told Reuters: "Considering the upcoming US elections, it is possible to reach an understanding that will involve issuing waivers on banking and oil sectors that would allow Iran to export its oil freely and get its money back via the banking system" - currently barred by existing US sanctions.

This would mean an almost total unravelling of economic sanctions imposed since 2018, while leaving Iran on the nuclear threshold, with more than 100 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent.

The three regional sources said Tehran had already committed to lowering enrichment of uranium to 60% - below the roughly 90% needed for a nuclear weapon - and was ready to resume cooperation with the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which monitors Iran's nuclear work.

However, last week Iran withdrew accreditation to several UN nuclear inspectors, angering the IAEA and Western powers that later issued a statement calling on Tehran to rescind its decision. Iran could be upping the ante precisely because there are behind the scenes talks, to extract maximum concessions.

During his visit to Tehran on Tuesday, Sergei Shoigu said, "We are pursuing a comprehensive range of planned activities, notwithstanding opposition from the United States and its Western allies."

He went on to emphasize that the pressure of sanctions on both Russia and Iran has proven to be “ineffective”, while the interaction between Russia and Iran is progressing to a new stage.

For his part, Mohammad Baqeri, the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, declared that Tehran and Moscow have intentions to solidify their military and technical cooperation through a long-term treaty.

Baqeri characterized the relations between Tehran and Moscow as "advancing and evolving" and disclosed that, based on decisions made by the leaders of both nations, a document outlining their long-term cooperation will soon be finalized.

Baqeri also noted that a joint military exercise between Iran and Russia is slated for February, with the objective of bolstering military ties between the two nations.

Shoigu arrived in Tehran on Tuesday, leading a delegation of Russian military officials.

The news of increased military cooperation between the Islamic Republic and Russia comes at a time when Tehran's provision of military support to Moscow during the Russian war on Ukraine has led to yet more sanctions.

Although officials from the Islamic Republic have consistently denied any involvement or cooperation with Russia during the Ukraine war, the United States, the European Union, Australia, and New Zealand have imposed sanctions on Iran based on on-site evidence and intelligence, alleging its supply of drones to Russia.

During his visit to New York for the 78th United Nations General Assembly, he said the Islamic Republic is ready to boost such cooperation in areas like social services, healthcare, and culture.

Raisi made the remarks while meeting with a delegation of Shiite community members, stressing the importance of nurturing Shiite culture in the United States.

The move comes as some critics have alleged that the Iranian regime uses mosques and Islamic centers to promote its propaganda and hostility towards those who oppose the Iranian government.

Recently, a group of Republican members of Congress sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, alerting them to the influence of Iran's extremist ideology in several US-based mosques and centers.

The letter also raised concerns about the promotion of hatred by Iran's leadership within these mosques and cultural centers. It called on the US government to recognize and address the threat posed by state-sponsored terrorism, whether abroad or domestically.

Earlier this month, Omid Nouripour, leader of Germany's Green Party, called for the closure of the Islamic Center in Hamburg, which he referred to as a "spy nest." He accused regime officials of using this network for espionage activities targeting both the German population and Iranians seeking refuge in Germany.

Additionally, in August, the UK Charity Commission initiated an investigation into an Iran-linked British foundation called Al-Tawheed Charitable Trust. This foundation has hosted hardline Islamic clerics and paramilitary figures while promoting the propaganda of the Islamic Republic's regime among Shia Muslim youth in the UK.

While Ebrahim Raisi, the man known as the ‘Butcher Of Tehran’ for his history of gross human rights violations, was addressing the UN with an onslaught of regime propaganda including claiming the country is an “unparalleled” beacon of women’s rights, Israel’s ambassador to the UN was physically escorted off site for protesting Raisi’s presence. 

Ambassador Gilad Erdan held a poster calling for women’s rights in Iran, showing the face of Mahsa Amini, the face of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement after her death in morality police custody last year, and was forcefully removed from the United Nations by security. 

Erdan was the only member of the UN General Assembly to protest. In contrast, in March, more than 100 diplomats from 40 Western countries and allies including Japan walked out of a speech by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to the top UN human rights forum in protest over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The boycott by envoys from the European Union, the United States, Britain and others left only a few diplomats in the room including envoys from Syria, China and Venezuela.

Soon after, in April, the United States, Britain, Albania and Malta walked out on Russia's envoy for children's rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, who the International Criminal Court wants to arrest on war crimes charges, as she spoke by video to UN Security Council members. 

Emboldened, Raisi - who as a prosecutor, took part in the 1988 mass executions that killed some 5,000 political prisoners in Iran - told the UN on Tuesday that the United States should prove its "goodwill and determination" to revive Tehran's 2015 nuclear pact as months of indirect talks between the long-time foes have led nowhere. This was after he publicly stated that the US should "stop interfering in the countries of the Persian Gulf and other regions in the world and mind their own business".

Raisi was speaking on the back of a prisoner swap which saw five US convicted Iranians exchanged for five wrongly held US-Iranian citizens, in addition to $6bn in frozen Iranian funds freed up from South Korea. 

In a show of appeasement to the barrage of criticism levied to the Biden administration for the deal, which critics say opens the door to yet more hostage diplomacy by Iran, putting further Americans at risk, the administration levied more sanctions on seven individuals and four entities in Iran, China, Russia, and Turkey for their roles in Iran's UAV and military aircraft development.

However, while Raisi was addressing the world’s leaders, Russia’s Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu, who is in Tehran, announced that “relations between Russia and Iran in the field of defense are developing dynamically. The number of meetings at different levels has increased. The relationship is developing well,” suggesting the $6bn in released funds will be used to fund the regime’s military and nuclear development. 

Raisi is reveling in the PR potential of the visit as the world watches. Only Monday, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, he denied sending weapons to Russia, in spite of extensive evidence otherwise which has led to multiple nations including the US and UK, issuing sanctions against Iran. 

While the Russian defense minister speaks of burgeoning ties from Tehran, Raisi said from New York, “We are against the war in Ukraine”, while evidence has also shown the two nations building munitions factories together in Russia. 

Despite the global backlash for Raisi’s welcome in the UN, the Council of Foreign Relations (CFR) has gone ahead with its invitation to meet with him in New York. Iranian actress and rights activist Nazanin Boniadi, a member of CFR, refused to attend the private meeting. 

“Some say that these meetings allow us to hold the feet of dictators to the fire, but the past 44 years have shown us that not only are these meetings futile, the Islamic Republic also uses them to legitimize themselves on the global stage,” she wrote on X. 

“Continuing the same practices and expecting tyrants to change their behavior seems completely irrational,” she added. “Democratic institutions hold the key to tipping the balance of power in favor of those risking everything for freedom. If you afford your members the opportunity to meet dictators behind closed doors, then at least offer them the chance to also hear from their opponents in the open.”