Iran denies it wants to acquire nuclear weapons, but it is no longer complying with its commitments under the 2015 deal with world powers which limited its nuclear ambitions in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.
The pact, known by the acronym JCPOA, fell apart after the unilateral withdrawal of the United States under then-president Donald Trump in 2018 which led to the reimposition of crushing sanctions on Iran.
‘A few nuances’
On Monday, Iran’s long-time nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri was named acting foreign minister to replace the top diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdolahian, who was also killed in the helicopter crash.
“The Iranian foreign ministry already has a new head and the same priority: negotiations on the nuclear programme”, Hasni Abidi, director of the Study and Research Centre for the Arab and Mediterranean World in Geneva, said on X.
Brodsky said that “Iran’s nuclear program and the decision-making surrounding it will remain unchanged because at the end of the day it’s the supreme leader and the Supreme National Security Council which are overseeing the nuclear file”.
The ultraconservative Raisi, 63, had been in office since 2021, during a time that has seen Iran rocked by mass protests and an economic crisis deepened by sweeping US sanctions.
Abidi said that the search for the next supreme leader — and not the death of the Iranian president — would be a game changer.
“Raisi was the future leader. He had the support of all the elements of the system”, he said.
Vahid said there would only ever be radical change in Iran’s foreign policy towards Israel or the United States or to its nuclear programme if there was “a change of the regime”.
“The death of Raisi may bring a few nuances, a few differences,” he said, but no major change should be expected “as long as the leader is alive and the Guards are there”.
