海角大神

Hard-liners in Iran are lashing out at Iran's nuclear negotiating team, arguing that if the United States is happy about the outcome of talks in Geneva last week,听then Iran must have听given away听too many concessions. Secrecy听on the content of talks,听agreed to by both sides,听is also being used as an argument to raise suspicions and fuel that criticism.听

At the end of two days of talks between Iran and world powers on curbing Iran's nuclear program, a senior US official said the American negotiating team had 鈥渘ever had such intense, detailed, straightforward, candid conversation鈥� in 1-1/2 years of fruitless effort. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif听echoed the positive note, saying a 鈥渧ery important step鈥� had been made and that he was 鈥渓ooking at the future with some hope.鈥�

Serious differences remain between Iran and the P5+1 group (the US, Russia, China, Britain, France, and Germany), with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov听saying the two sides remained 鈥渒ilometers鈥� apart.

Yet hard-line editors and politicians in Iran focused on the hints of progress, firing off complaints that Mr. Zarif and his team must be secretly peddling a bad deal for Iran. It's a reaction that underscored how vicious political infighting remains in Iran, even after the surprise, overwhelming victory of centrist President Hassan Rouhani in June elections over a slate of conservative candidates.听Many hard-liners 鈥� whose voices have been muted but growing since the election 鈥搒ee the new president's outreach as听too compromising in its eagerness to strike a nuclear deal and ease sanctions.

Hossein Shariatmadari, the editor of the hard-line Kayhan newspaper 鈥撎齛n official representative of Iran鈥檚 supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei 鈥� titled his analysis, 鈥淲hy is the enemy satisfied?鈥� The newspaper has played the role of 鈥渂ad cop鈥澨齛s听popular听optimism inside Iran has surged this summer in response to听Mr. Rouhani鈥檚 pledge of moderation and change.

鈥淭he unprecedented excitement of [the P5+1] 鈥� shows that we have not gained any concessions in return for all the concessions that we have given away or promised to give away,鈥� Mr. Shariatmadari wrote. 鈥淭his bitter reality is more听obvious than 'secret.' 鈥�

Talks to the benefit of the P5+1 鈥渕eans to our loss,鈥� Shariatmadari wrote.听Iran's counterpart at the talks are the "enemy of Islam and Iran," he said, and secrecy would mean that Iranian media could not counter their "psychological operations." The secrecy, he asserted, was raising 鈥渟uspicions in public opinion that [Iran鈥檚 team] might give an 鈥榠nappropriate鈥� concession.鈥澨�听

Despite the official link to Mr. Khamenei,听Kayhan and its editor have seen much听reduced influence of its reach and ideological message, since the resounding defeat of conservative candidates last June.听Shariatmadari has also been known to take especially hard-line stances that have undermined sitting governments, and provoked hard-line factions 鈥� which remain a minority in Iran 鈥� into noisy backlash. The result for Khamenei, Iran experts say, is a delicate balancing act.

"I think [Khamenei] doesn鈥檛 like to distance himself from obedient and loyal hard-liners,鈥澨齭ays an analyst in Tehran who, like most commentators in Iran, declined to be identified publicly.听鈥淏y this policy, he not only keeps the sword of Damocles over the government and reformists 鈥� but being close to [hard-liners] makes it easier for him to control them.鈥�

Speculation

There have been several reports in US and Israeli media 鈥撎齭ourced to unnamed Iranian or Western officials, or Americans who briefed Israel on the Geneva talks 鈥� purporting to know the details of Zarif's proposal.听Those unconfirmed reports听contain听familiar contours expected in any final deal: A halt to Iran鈥檚 most sensitive uranium enrichment of 20 percent, which is technically a few steps from bomb-grade; limits on low-level enrichment; much more intrusive inspections.

Zarif, who titled his Geneva PowerPoint presentation 鈥淐losing unnecessary crisis, and opening a new horizon鈥� and spoke in English, has听given interviews and taken to social media听to clarify that there had been no leaks of the Iranian offer.听

鈥淭hese are speculations that have little in common with reality,鈥� Zarif . 鈥淥ur refusal to unveil details of the proposal is a sign of our sincerity and seriousness.鈥澨�

鈥淢y colleagues and I are prepared to bear the media pressure,鈥� he wrote in Persian on Facebook, adding that keeping the talks secret 鈥渄oes not mean that we are afraid of revealing their contents.鈥�

The Obama administration has its own set of potential spoilers to contend with, if any deal is to be struck. Many members of the US Congress are determined to add further sanctions that could听disrupt the talks. And US-ally听Israel has spelled out its own demands that Iran not just limit its nuclear work, but in fact dismantle its entire nuclear program 鈥撎齛n ambition that few others entertain, with industrial-scale nuclear work already under way for years in Iran.

In Iran potential spoilers are also numerous,听and听Kayhan has already had an effect.听It misquoted听Zarif telling a closed-door meeting with Iranian lawmakers听that Rouhani鈥檚 historic phone call with President Obama in late September was a mistake.

Upon seeing that Kayhan headline, Zarif听said he was听afflicted with back and leg pain that took him briefly to the hospital听and听has听since affected his work. Afterward he said all听official听statements would be made publicly, because 鈥渢he market for abuse is very active."

Khamenei's balancing act

Weeks ago, Khamenei ordered all factions in Iran to support the fledgling Rouhani government, and said in advance of Rouhani鈥檚 diplomatic efforts-- in New York at the United Nations and in Geneva on the nuclear file-- that 鈥渉eroic flexibility鈥� might be necessary.

Iran鈥檚听Friday听prayer leaders take their guidance from听the supreme leader, and last Friday many praised the result in Geneva,听while also asking why details remained hidden.听鈥淭he heroic aspects were preserved during the negotiations because no Iranian bowed to the enemy,鈥� said the prayer leader in Qom.

Many other Iranian officials also approved of the positive result, noting that Iran鈥檚 new proposal was now the center of the talks, effectively replacing a P5+1 offer presented last spring that was seen by Iran as unbalanced.

But after the Obama-Rouhani phone call,听Khamenei听said that some actions in New York 鈥� without specifying which 鈥� had been 鈥渋nappropriate.鈥澨齌hat simple hint came from a rankled Khamenei in partial response to Mr. Obama restating that "all options" including military ones were on the table regarding Iran, while standing next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It also opened the way for Iran鈥檚 hard-liners to step up their attacks.

They oppose what they call 鈥渢he New Yorkers circle鈥� of Iranian officials close to Zarif who have often spent years posted in New York, and who听hard-liners听believe are too close to the US and want to normalize relations after nearly 35 years of mutual hostility. Zarif was educated in the US, and was Iran鈥檚 UN ambassador听for five years.

鈥淭his gang is a well-known group in the foreign ministry鈥�which enjoys a very negative opinion and is responsible for measures in the years after the [1979] Islamic revolution which were mostly destructive for the country,鈥� wrote one hard-line weekly, according to a translation by Rooz Online.

The hard-line Raja News website spoke of 鈥渢he clear and undeniable record of the activities of the New Yorkers group in damaging the national interest.鈥�

In another note听about Geneva,听Kayhan听asked why the 鈥淕reat Satan鈥� America (along with the 鈥淟ittle Satan鈥� Israel) was an insider aware of the听proposal details, while the Iranian people are outsiders. Resalat newspaper noted that听鈥溾�榗reating鈥� doubt is different from 鈥榤anaging' it.鈥�

Still, more moderate Iranian news sources took issue with the hard-line view.

The Alef news website, for example, chastised Kayhan鈥檚 editor for not telling the entire story. The site said that along with praise from the P5+1 for the unprecedented candor from Iran was also recognition that Iran鈥檚 new offer 鈥渋s meaningfully far from the West鈥檚 desire鈥�. Therefore there is no reason to accuse Iranian diplomats of being traitorous.鈥�

Likewise, the reformist Bahar newspaper sought to slap down Kayhan by stating a fact of life in Iran 鈥撎齮hat Khamenei makes all final decisions 鈥撎齛nd noting that previous years of failed nuclear talks conducted by hardliners were also done in secret, with little complaint.

鈥淎 question comes to mind: Can the new team reach an agreement and execute it without the permission of the Supreme Leader and the National Security Council?鈥澨� Bahar asked. 鈥淓verybody is well aware that the smallest details of this case [require] the Supreme Leader鈥檚 approval.鈥�