In Tehran, Iran, a former Iranian foreign minister crucial to the 2015 nuclear agreement with global powers, reportedly stepped down on Monday from the administration of reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian due to pressure from hard-liners.
This resignation marks Iran’s swift distancing from Western engagement, particularly as U.S. President Donald Trump intensifies sanctions against it.
Mohammad Javad Zarif, who served as Vice President to Pezeshkian, has long been a target for hard-liners within Iran’s religious leadership.
It was not his first attempt at resigning his position in strategic affairs.
This development follows Iran’s parliament’s Sunday decision to impeach Finance Minister Abdolnasser Hemmati.
Hemmati once considered a run for the presidency, signaling a willingness to engage directly with the U.S.
Though legislators criticized Hemmati for Iran’s devaluing rial, his dismissal also highlighted the peril for Pezeshkian’s administration, whose electoral victory last year was based on a promise to mitigate sanctions through Western diplomacy.
Political analyst Mohmmad Ebrahim Ansari Lari warned that Pezeshkian might face even tougher challenges ahead.
The state-run IRNA news agency revealed that Zarif submitted his resignation to Pezeshkian late on Sunday night, though it remains uncertain if the president has accepted it.
This is Zarif’s second resignation attempt as vice president.
On a social platform, Zarif mentioned a meeting with the judiciary chief, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, who advised him to return to academia to alleviate governmental pressure, a suggestion Zarif readily accepted.
Mohseni-Ejei’s remarks remain undisclosed, but Zarif has faced criticism for his children’s U.S. citizenship due to his previous role at Iran’s mission to the United Nations.
Zarif has sometimes used resignation as a political maneuver, including an earlier dispute over Pezeshkian’s Cabinet composition, which the president declined.
According to Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani, Pezeshkian has not yet accepted Zarif’s resignation.
Mohajerani criticized the law that entangles Zarif, arguing that it unnecessarily deprives Iran of valuable human resources.
Iran’s hardening stance on international talks follows significant changes with the return of Trump to the White House.
In August, Iran’s 85-year-old supreme leader was somewhat open to Western negotiations, but reversed this position in February.
Despite Trump’s signals for potential dialogue with Tehran, his administration has reinstated a “maximum pressure” sanctions regime.
Pezeshkian has aligned with the supreme leader’s hardline directives against U.S. negotiations, stating his compliance with these directions despite previously advocating for talks.
The U.S. sanctions coincide with Iran’s ramped-up production of near weapons-grade uranium, as reported by the UN’s nuclear watchdog.
Although Iran insists on the peaceful nature of its nuclear program, U.S. intelligence suggests Iran might be positioning itself to eventually create a nuclear device if it chooses to pursue one.
Iranian officials have hinted at the possibility of seeking nuclear arms.
U.S. and Israeli declarations have also emphasized preventing Iran’s nuclear weapon development, raising stakes amid increased tensions after Iran’s attacks on Israel in the ongoing Gaza conflict.
