South Asia Center Nonresident Senior Fellow Barbara Slavin writes for Al Jazeera America on Iran’s Supreme Leader speaking positively about a nuclear deal with the United States:
Iran’s Supreme Leader is often opaque in his pronouncements on the Islamic Republic’s dealings with foreign powers. That’s why many observers deemed significant the unmistakably supportive tone of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s Feb. 8 comments on the matter in a speech to Air Force cadets as multilateral nuclear negotiations approach an end-of-March deadline for the framework of a deal.
“I would go along with any agreement that could be made,” Khamenei said. Echoing President Barack Obama, Iran’s key executive decision maker added, “Of course, I am not for a bad deal.” But then he agreed with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that “negotiations mean reaching a common point … . This means that one side would not end up getting all it wants.”