With most of Iran’s high profile foreign policy leadership mum on the matter, an interesting set of mixed signals has emerged today from Iranian officials who rarely get openly involved in foreign matters; the Chief Justice of Iran Sadeq Larijani and the usually quiet Intelligence Ministry.
The Intelligence Ministry issued a public report on the constant threat of Israeli attack, terms diplomacy a “necessary” goal for the Iranian government, and a far less costly one than fighting an all-out war. The report is being cited frequently in the Iranian press, emphasizing the importance of avoiding war.
At the same time, Chief Justice Larijani, a powerful legal figure and the brother of Iran’s parliament speaker Ali Larijani, issued a statement condemning the US for sanctions and saying that negotiations would be difficult to enter into at all given the sanctions.
“Americans should not think they can hold our nation to ransom by coming to the negotiating table,” Larijani said, while adding that Iran had been “disappointed” by President Obama’s after his 2008 election and promises of “cooperation” turned into “unprecedented sanctions.”