Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 30
By Umid Niayesh, Temkin Jafarov - Trend:
If a conservative MP from Iranian parliament joins the country's nuclear negotiating team, other conservatives would be able to get the details of the negotiations, expert on nuclear issues Reza Taghizadeh told Trend on Jan. 30.
The expert was commenting on the preposition of Iranian parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani to add head of Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Aladdin Boroujerdi to the country's negotiating team.
"Boroujerdi is an extremist MP, who will harm the nuclear talks," Taghizadeh said. "If he joins the negotiating team, which already includes 4-5 people, the team's reach would become limited, and the negotiating process can slow down."
On Jan. 30, IRNA news agency reported that Larijani has submitted the request to add Boroujerdi to the negotiating team, to Iran's president Hassan Rouhani.
IRNA did not provide a response from either Rouhani or Iran's FM Mohammad Javad Zarif on Larijani's preposition, while Mehr News agency reported that Rouhani accepted Larijani's suggestion for adding Boroujerdi to the negotiating team.
"This request is in line with earler requests from conservatives, who want to have a group to supervise nuclear negotiating team," Taghizadeh said. "On the other hand, the question is whether the MP, if added, will participate in all meetings of the team, which also include sideline talks with P5+1."
He went on to say that there are signs, which indicate there is a possibility of a secret deal between Iran and the US on the nuclear issue.
"The two countries may have agreed on some issues which have not been announced to the public," he added. "The issue of differences between the two countries about including Iran's uranium enrichment right in the joint plant text is one of there issues."
Another issue, as Taghizadeh said is that the Iran-IAEA agreement doesn't include a long-standing request by the IAEA to inspect Iran's Parchin military complex, where U.S. officials think Iranian scientists carried out secret research on nuclear weapons components.
Western intelligence agencies believe that Iran tested detonation systems for a nuclear bomb at Parchin as recently as 2003. Under mounting international pressure, government officials ordered a halt in weapons-related research late that year, U.S. intelligence officials had said.
"We can assume that the U.S. doesn't repeat the request for inspecting Parchin, to allow Iran to have more flexibility in the negotiating process," Taghizadeh said.
"It is possible that Iran has accepted additional protocol during the secret deal with the P5+1 to permit IAEA inspectors to supervise the country's nuclear facilities," he said.
Additional protocol was endorsed by Iran in 2003, but not officially ratified by the country's parliament.
In mid October, Alaeddin Boroujerdi said that adoption of the Additional Protocol of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) needs the Iranian parliament's approval.
"While conservative MPs are against the implementation of the Additional Protocol, adding Boroujerdi to the negotiating team may harm implementation of the Geneva nuclear deal," Taghizadeh stated.
The expert said that the conservative MPs have expressed concerns because they believe Iran was given a lesser concession compared to what it gave up to the West, as part of the Geneva nuclear deal.
"Iran's nuclear program was seriously limited by the Geneva deal, even in terms of peaceful aspects," the expert underlined. "Adding Boroujerdi to the nuclear team will decrease conservatives' concerns about the possible secret nuclear deal."
Commenting on an issue about conservatives' concerns on Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei supporting the negotiating team, Taghizadeh said that Khamenei's approach is different from that of conservatives.
"During his meetings with the presidential administration, Khamenei has expressed his support for the nuclear talks, however in public he speaks in a different style, describing the U.S. as unreliable negotiator," he said.
"Khamenei is seriously concerned about the future of Iran's regime, while international sanctions are threatening the country's economy," Taghizadeh noted. "On the other hand, he shows himself to be close to the conservatives and tries to gain support of the parliament and the IRGC."
Taghizadeh underscored that Khamenei's dual policy give opportunity to the extremists to impose more pressure against Rouhani`s administration.
The U.S. and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing a nuclear weapon - something that Iran denies. The Islamic Republic has on numerous occasions stated that it does not seek to develop nuclear weapons, using nuclear energy for medical researches instead.
Edited by Saeed Isayev