Iranian Leader Khamenei Endorses President-Elect, Kicking Off Tenure
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s formal endorsement of Masoud Pezeshkian yesterday officially begins Pezeshkian’s presidential tenure ahead of a swearing-in ceremony tomorrow; Khamenei called for Pezeshkian to focus his foreign policy on investing in relations with neighboring countries, as well as African and Asian nations, rather than Western countries (RFE/RL)
Pezeskhian appointed moderate reformist Mohammad Reza Aref as his vice president (AP)
Iran Threatens to Leave Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi stated that if European countries trigger a snapback mechanism and reimpose sanctions on Iran, then Iran may withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (AP)
Separately, a U.S. destroyer approached waters monitored by Iran in the Gulf of Oman, and an Iranian naval helicopter issued a warning to the boat, causing it to retreat southward; Iranian state television said that the U.S. destroyer Fitzgerald approached Iran’s waters “in a provocative move” (Reuters;AP)
Reformist Wins Iranian Presidential Election
Masoud Pezeshkian triumphed in Friday’s runoff election by around a 10 percent margin above his competitor, the interior ministry said (AFP)
Pezeshkian contrasts his predecessor’s views, calling for a return to a nuclear deal with Western countries and pledging to pursue peace in the region; he was the only reformist allowed to run by Iran’s Guardian Council (WaPo)
Iranians to Vote in Presidential Runoff Between Reformist, Hardline Candidates
Reformist Masoud Pezeshkian won 43 percent of votes in the first-round presidential election last week, with a narrow edge over conservative candidate Saeed Jalili, who gained 39 percent (Al Jazeera)
Two other hardline candidates were knocked out of the race, which will go to a runoff on Friday (AP)
Pezeshkian supports more engagement with Western countries, while Jalili upholds Iran’s status quo leaning against such global cooperation (WSJ)
Iranians Begin Voting in Snap Presidential Election
Four candidates are running on today’s ballot to replace late President Ebrahim Raisi after his death in a helicopter crash last month (AP)
None of them are expected to secure an outright majority; Iranian conservatives have voiced concern that the three hard-line candidates running could split the conservative vote and yield a runoff against the one reformist candidate (RFE/RL)
A runoff, if triggered, would be held on July 5 (NYT)
Two Hardline Candidates Drop Out of Iran Presidential Race
The mayor of Tehran and vice president to the late President Ebrahim Raisi called for unity among voters after withdrawing from the race ahead of tomorrow’s election; four contenders remain, including a reformist candidate who Tehran’s mayor said he aimed to block by withdrawing (AP)
NYT: All Six Male Presidential Candidates Distance Themselves From Harsh Enforcement of Headscarf Requirements
The presidential candidates’ statements in recent weeks reflect how public opinion on the matter has evolved since the country’s “Women, Life, Freedom” protests to resist the headscarf law and other crackdowns on womens’ rights began almost two years ago (NYT)
Bahrain, Iran to Agree to Discuss Resuming Ties
Foreign ministers from both countries met in Tehran and agreed to move forward with the talks, Bahraini state media reported; their rapprochement comes after Saudi Arabia and Iran announced in March 2023 that they would restore diplomatic ties (The National)
Canada Adds Iran’s IRGC to Terrorism List
Adding the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to Canada’s list of terrorist organizations enables Canadian authorities to charge and freeze the assets of entities that support the group; Canada’s public safety minister said the move seeks to ensure “there is no immunity for Iran’s unlawful actions and its support of terrorism” (CBC)
Iran’s Presidential Candidates Discuss Economic Policies in First of Five Debates
Six Iranian presidential candidates discussed economic policies on Monday in the first of five debates ahead of the June 28 election; issues such as sanctions, inflation, the budget deficit, Iran’s housing crisis, and corruption were discussed (AP)
Timeline of Russia-Iran Cooperation Agreement Shifts
After initially suggesting that its cooperation agreement with Iran was suspended, Russia instead stated that the timeline of its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty with Iran would only be shifted until after Iran’s July presidential elections (Newsweek)
Guardian Council Approves Candidates for Presidential Election
The council approved five hardline candidates and one reformist candidate for competition in a June 28 presidential election following the helicopter crash that killed President Ebrahim Raisi (AP)
UN Atomic Energy Agency Passes Resolution Censuring Iran
European members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) proposed the resolution, which calls on Iran to honor agreements that allow nuclear inspectors to access certain sites (Bloomberg; AP)
The censure follows an IAEA report last week that Iran has continued to increase its stock of near-weapons-grade level uranium. The IAEA last censured Iran in 2022 (Politico)
Israeli Airstrikes Near Aleppo, Syria Kill Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Officer
The officer is thought to be the first Iranian killed by Israel since the country bombed Iran’s Damascus embassy compound in April; the Syria Observatory for Human Rights, a United Kingdom (UK)-based watchdog, said the target appeared to be a copper factory and a weapons warehouse (NYT)
The IRGC and Iranian government did not immediately comment on the strike (RFE/RL)
Iran Sets June 28 Election Date as Country Mourns President
The new vote follows the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash on Sunday that Iranian state media blamed on a “technical failure” and is investigating; funeral events for Raisi and Iran’s foreign minister, who was also on the helicopter, began today in northwestern Iran (NYT)
Iran Names Acting President After Helicopter Crash Kills President, Foreign Minister
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, named the country’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber as acting president and tasked him with ensuring new presidential elections within fifty days, state media reported (WaPo)
Yesterday’s helicopter crash killed President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and several others on board (Reuters)
The crash raised new uncertainties in the country at a time of escalating regional violence; just days before the crash, Washington and Tehran held talks through intermediaries to try to lower the threat of wider conflict in the Middle East, the New York Times reported
Iran, as well as Lebanon and Pakistan, declared official periods of mourning following Raisi’s death (NBC)
Raisi’s governance reinforced Khamenei’s efforts to cement the influence of hardline conservatives; Raisi was a judicial official before becoming president (FT)
In 2019, he was sanctioned by the United States, which cited his role in “extrajudicial executions” in 1988 and suppression of dissent in 2009; he had been viewed as a potential successor to Khamenei, who turned eighty-five last month (ABC)
Helicopter Carrying Iranian President, Foreign Minister Crashes
Iranian media said bad weather caused the crash, and an Iranian official told Reuters the helicopter was flying through mountainous terrain in heavy fog (Reuters)
The delegation was en route to Tabriz after visiting the Iran-Azerbaijan border (BBC)
India, Iran Sign Ten-Year Deal on Operation of Chabahar Port
India’s shipping minister called the deal a “historic moment in India-Iran ties,” while a U.S. State Department spokesperson said in response that anyone considering deals with Iran should be aware of the “potential risk of sanctions;” the port in the Iranian town of Chabahar is near the border with Pakistan (BBC)
IAEA Chief Slams Iran’s Cooperation Over Its Nuclear Program
Rafael Grossi, head of the UN atomic watchdog, said after nuclear talks with Iran that Tehran’s current cooperation on nuclear issues was “completely unsatisfactory” and that there had been a “slowdown” in the implementation of a March 2023 agreement regarding safeguards and monitoring; Grossi pressed Iran to “deliver very soon”(AFP)
Report: Iranian Traders Smuggle More Than $1 Billion Worth of Fuel Into Pakistan per Year
Pakistani intelligence agencies compiled the report, which was leaked to local media; the smuggled amount accounts for around 14 percent of Pakistan’s annual consumption and resulted in around $820 million in losses to public revenue, the report said (Nikkei)
United States, Canada, and United Kingdom Announce New Sanctions on Iran
The new sanctions target Iran’s drone and missile industries following its drone attack on Israel earlier this month (Politico)
North Korea Sends Rare Diplomatic Delegation to Iran
Minister of External Economic Relations Yun Jung Ho traveled to Iran yesterday, North Korea’s official news agency reported today; the trip is the first known visit by North Korean officials to Iran since August 2019 (AP)
Both countries are among the few supporters of Russia’s war in Ukraine; Pyongyang has been accused of providing Moscow with military equipment for its war efforts (Reuters)
Iranian, Pakistani Leaders Announce Plans to Boost Bilateral Trade on Visit
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi began a three-day visit to Pakistan yesterday in an effort to mend ties after tit-for-tat military strikes earlier this year (Reuters)
The two countries hope to increase bilateral trade from its current level of around $2.3 billion per year to $10 billion over the next five years (Dawn)
Tehran Plays Down Damage Over Israeli Strikes Reported in Iran
Iran’s air defenses were activated to respond to incoming strikes in the central city of Isfahan and northwest city of Tabriz this morning, local authorities and media said; the strikes appeared to be a limited Israeli retaliation for Iran’s missile and drone attack on Israel over the weekend (FT)
Iranian state media played down the damage from the attacks, which came after world leaders urged both countries to de-escalate tensions; U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington “has not been involved in any offensive operations” and called on “all concerned to exercise restraint” (FT)
In the wake of Iran’s weekend barrage on Israel, Western officials worked to punish Iran while avoiding further military escalation; the United States, United Kingdom (UK), and European Union imposed new sanctions on Iran yesterday for its recent attack (NYT)
U.S. President Joe Biden personally appealed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this weekend to contain Israel’s response to Iran’s actions, saying that the United States would not support an Israeli counterattack, according to an unnamed senior White House official (Axios)
Iran’s Oil Exports Reached Six-Year High in First Quarter of 2024
According to data company Vortexa; almost all of the oil went to China; even as Western countries weigh sanctions on Iran for its attack on Israel, analysts say Washington is reluctant to enforce a “maximum pressure” regime on Iran’s oil exports in a way that could stoke inflation (FT)