Institute for Contemporary Affairs
Founded jointly with the Wechsler Family Foundation/ Vol. 15, No. 18 June 18, 2015
- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani addressed Iranian and foreign journalists on June 14, 2015, to mark two years since his election.
- Rouhani adhered to the red lines stipulated by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei1 concerning the scope of the monitoring of Iran’s nuclear program, asserting that inspectors would not be allowed to enter military sites.
- Rouhani thanked Khamenei for “outlining and defining the path, supporting the negotiating team, and maintaining domestic unity in Iran.”
- He added that no one in the world, including the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (the P5+1), doubts any longer that Iran has the right to enrich uranium and that the enrichment facilities at Natanz and Fordo will not be shut.
- Massoud Jazzayeri, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, reiterated that permission “will definitely never be issued for any kind of access to the military centers.”
- Hardline cleric Ayatollah Seyyed Ahmad Khatami backed Rouhani and stressed the fact that the nuclear talks are advancing and that a renewal of relations with the United States is in no way on their agenda.