Iran held its second of three presidential debates, and the focus turned to that irritant under their hide – the nuclear deal. Rohollah Faghihi reports in AL Monitor:
The most controversial issue during the second debate, which dealt with political and social issues, was the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). At the time of its signing in 2015, many conservatives expressed staunch criticism of the nuclear deal, but during the May 5 debate, Ghalibaf and fellow conservative Ebrahim Raisi both vowed to protect the JCPOA and remain committed to it. However, they said that they do not consider the deal as perfect, and questioned the Rouhani administration’s ability to take sufficient advantage of it. Indeed, Ghalibaf and Raisi likened the nuclear deal to a check Rouhani “is not able to cash.”
In response, Rouhani challenged Ghalibaf’s and Raisi’s command of the details of the nuclear crisis, saying, “What do you know about the JCPOA that [compels] you to talk like this?” In response, Raisi said, “When Mr. Rouhani was the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council [1989-2005], a meeting was held between him and me, and I told him that we had received some reports about the NPT [Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty], and I asked him if he was aware of this, but he said [let’s] talk about it later.”
Rouhani also accused his rivals — and the conservative camp more broadly — of plotting to kill the nuclear deal while being “jubilant” about the election of US President Donald Trump, since he had pledged to tear up the JCPOA during his campaign. Noting the installment of anti-negotiation billboards by the Tehran municipality headed by Ghalibaf during the nuclear talks, Rouhani said, “If the JCPOA was acceptable to you, then why did you install billboards across Tehran, and spoke in that way with the [Iranian] negotiators. … Your talk was similar to the statements of [Iran’s] opponents, including the Wahhabists [Saudi Arabia] and the Zionists [Israel].”
It’s interesting how the conservatives on both sides of the conflict hate the instrument of peace. Perhaps the conflict itself gives them a reason to exist? Granted, on the American side there’s more to it; what about the Iranian side?
A live blog of the debate by Golnaz Esfandiari is on RadioFreeEurope / RadioLiberty.
