Khamenei’s Reinterpretation of Nuclear Deal and the Implications

Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s representative to the council, reiterated Tuesday that the government would continue to implement the supreme leader’s “stipulations about the JCPOA.” He was referring to Khamenei’s letter to President Hassan Rouhani on October 21 laying out new conditions for the implementation of this summer’s nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Shamkhani added that the council had formed a committee to implement Khamenei’s unilateral reinterpretation of the deal. The letter raises serious concerns about the nuclear deal’s enforcement.

For one, Khamenei’s letter challenges the agreed-upon timetable for the agreement’s implementation. According to the JCPOA, Iran was to begin redesigning the Arak heavy water reactor and shipping out 98 percent of its low-enriched uranium after the deal went into effect (“Adoption Day”) on October 18. According to Khamenei’s letter, however, that must happen only after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) “closes the file” on the possible military dimensions (PMD) of Tehran’s past nuclear program. Practically speaking, this translates to a two-month delay, with the IAEA report due out by December 15.

More troublingly, the supreme leader demands that the U.S. and the EU remove, in writing, the “sanctions structure.” This is a reference to the non-nuclear sanctions (terrorism and human rights), as well as the sanctions that could be “snapped back” if Iran is found to be in significant non-compliance over the first eight years of the agreement. Notably, the Obama administration relied on these sanctions to assuage Congressional concerns about the JCPOA. More importantly, Khamenei’s conditions represent a significant reversal on key aspects of the nuclear deal.  

It is also worth noting that Iran has made it clear that it will continue to reinterpret the ballistic missile provisions of the agreement. Major General Hassan Firouzabadi, chief of the Armed Forces General Staff Headquarters and a close disciple of Khamenei, told senior military commanders on November 3 that Iran would build missiles with a 2,000-kilometer range. That announcement came days after Iran tested a long-range ballistic missile. The test and ongoing construction clearly violate United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1929. After the provisions of UNSCR 1929 are terminated, Iran’s continued ballistic missile activities will be in violation of UNSCR 2231, which endorses the JCPOA.    

While the West has voiced concern over the ballistic missile issue, none of the P5+1 member states have commented on Khamenei’s letter or on his new committee. To Khamenei, this could signal tacit acceptance of his conditions. To ensure that this is not the message, the U.S. administration and Congress should declare their inflexibility on the supreme leader’s reinterpretation of the deal and make clear that the final draft of the JCPOA, deeply flawed as it may be, is just that—final. 

Amir Toumaj is a research analyst at Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Follow him on Twitter @AmirToumaj