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Khamenei backs peace deal with caution as Iran-US tensions enter a new phase.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Thursday that he approved a deal signed by Donald Trump despite his reservations.
The agreement sets in motion a 60-day period of negotiations on broader issues between the two long-time adversaries, including Iran’s nuclear programme.
However, uncertainty remains over the next phase, as it is still unclear whether both sides will participate in a signing ceremony and talks in Switzerland as previously announced.
Oil prices fell sharply following the signing of the agreement, although activity remained subdued in the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial energy shipping route that Iran had blockaded during the conflict and which is expected to reopen immediately under the terms of the deal.
Mojtaba Khamenei, who assumed leadership after his father, Ali Khamenei, was killed in an airstrike on February 28, said in a written statement that he approved the agreement despite holding a “different view,” without providing further details.
“But I issued my permission due to the commitment” made by officials, including Pezeshkian, to “protect the rights of the Iranian nation,” he stated.
He added that future “face-to-face negotiations” with the United States would not signify acceptance of the American position.
During his tenure, Ali Khamenei repeatedly allowed negotiations with foreign powers while publicly expressing little enthusiasm for them.
The new supreme leader, reportedly wounded in an airstrike, has not appeared in public since taking office. Observers are expected to closely watch his father’s funeral ceremonies in early July for indications of his leadership style.
‘Maybe They Start Fighting Again’
Earlier on Thursday, US forces lifted their naval blockade of Iranian ports, allowing vessels to resume travel to and from Iran. The US military noted that American warships would remain in the area.
Maritime trackers reported that three Saudi oil tankers passed through the strait, while the LNG vessel Mraikh became the first French liquefied natural gas carrier to make the journey since the conflict began.
Iranian state television, citing the Supreme National Security Council, announced that ships seeking passage through the Strait of Hormuz must submit requests to a newly established government body responsible for overseeing the waterway.
The council added that no fees would be charged for passage requests during the 60-day period outlined in the agreement.
US Vice President JD Vance said he planned to travel to Switzerland for technical negotiations with Iran over the weekend, though he cautioned that plans could change.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported that no official confirmation had been given regarding an Iranian delegation’s trip to Switzerland.
The agreement is expected to end the ongoing US-Israeli conflict with Iran, which involved five weeks of intense warfare before a ceasefire was reached in early April.
Despite the agreement, many Iranians remain sceptical about the prospects for long-term peace.
“I have no hope that this is a lasting agreement. Maybe after the 60 days they start fighting again,” said Mina, a 54-year-old psychologist from Tehran.
That concern was echoed by Emmanuel Macron, who hosted the signing ceremony at the Palace of Versailles and described the event as a “spontaneous” initiative by Trump.
Macron said he did not believe the conflict was completely over.
Sanctions Relief and Reconstruction Fund
Under the terms of the agreement, Washington has pledged to immediately lift oil sanctions that have severely impacted Iran’s economy.
The deal also provides that, once a final agreement is reached regarding Iran’s nuclear programme, the United States will facilitate the release of a $300 billion reconstruction fund backed by regional countries.
‘Victory’
Trump’s decision to end the conflict, during which 13 US service members were killed and large amounts of American military stockpiles were used, has drawn criticism from some allies.
US Senator Bill Cassidy described the move as the “worst foreign policy blunder in decades.”
“Iran’s nuclear ambitions were not curbed, and they have learned that threatening the Strait of Hormuz works,” Cassidy argued.
Responding to critics, Trump said during a G7 summit that he was prepared to “bomb the hell” out of Iran if the agreement was violated.
He later described opponents of the deal as “fools” and hailed the agreement as a “Victory.”
Some hardliners within Iran have also criticised the accord, viewing the conflict as an “imposed war” similar to the 1980–1988 war with Iraq.
However, parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf insisted the agreement reflected a US “failure,” while President Pezeshkian called it “historic.”
According to Agnes Lavallois, president of France’s Institute for Research and Studies on the Mediterranean and the Middle East, many observers believe the United States’ primary objective was the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
**AFP
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