Majlis commissions' examination of the recent international agreement on Iran's nuclear program, officially titled the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, can strengthen it, said the secretary of the Expediency Council in a televised interview on Saturday.
"I was an active supporter of Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in the course of negotiations and reassured him and his team of their success," IRNA reported Mohsen Rezaei as saying.
On the fact that the JCPOA is not subject to scrutiny at parliaments of all negotiating partners, the official noted, "The main parties to the talks were Iran and the US. Others were more of an observer. Twelve years ago when France and Britain started to hold talks with Iran, the negotiations failed due to the US obstructionism, which explain why more significance is attached to the approaches of Iran and the United States."
Asked about the sensitivity of the deal being looked into by lawmakers, Rezaei stated, "There are two groups of people concerning the issue. There are those who are concerned that in case the Majlis ratifies the JCPOA, it will be legally binding, leading to further restrictions which may be looked upon as another disgraceful treaty in Iranian history by posterity. The other group, who are skeptical in my view, do not want Majlis oversight of the JCPOA without any justifiable reasoning.
"The former seems to give the green light to the US to implement the JCPOA as they wish."
Stressing that as per the Constitution all international agreements need to be studied by Parliament, he said, "Examining agreements do not necessarily mean they ought to be passed and become law. However, when both lawmakers and the Supreme National Security Council scrutinize the JCPOA, it is certified that the agreement is thoroughly sound."
Final Say
On the probable disagreement between the lawmakers and the council over the accord, Rezaei noted, "Under such circumstances, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei will address the issue as he is the one who makes the final decision in critical situations."
Asked about the possible disapproval of the pact by the US Congress and the likely consequences for the US President Barack Obama, he stressed rejecting the agreement by the US lawmakers will bring disgrace for Obama at international level; furthermore, Washington will neither be able to urge world powers to abide by its decisions nor to cajole them to endorse its foreign policy.
