Tehran, Iran – Iran Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s reservations about his country’s interim peace deal with the United States have emboldened the country’s hardline political grouping, which opposes any concessions with Washington.Iran’s new supreme leader appears to have handed responsibility for the deal over to President Masoud Pezeshkian, a relative moderate, who is now under fire from a more hardline camp that believes war with the US could restart soon.The agreement, signed by Pezeshkian and US President Donald Trump – through mediation by Pakistan, Qatar and others – is also challenged by all political factions in Israel, who advocate military action against Iran to weaken Tehran and its “axis of resistance” coalition, including the Hezbollah armed group in Lebanon.Here’s a look at the internal dialogue in Iran since the memorandum of understanding was signed, and how different camps in Iran are framing it.What did Khamenei say?Khamenei has not been seen or heard from publicly since succeeding his father, Ali Khamenei, as supreme leader in March, but his view has been made clear on the Iran-US deal.“I, as a matter of principle, held a different view,” a brief, written statement attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei on Thursday said, in reference to the signing of the MoU with the US.But it said he granted his permission after “explicit acceptance of responsibility” by President Pezeshkian, as head of the Supreme National Security Council.He “also explicitly stated that if the American side seeks to make excessive demands, they …
