Questions regarding Mojtaba's health and his position within Iran's currently fractured regime have become a challenge for the Trump administration, as senior U.S. officials continue to state that it remains unclear who actually holds the authority to negotiate an end to the conflict.
"Their system remains highly fragmented and dysfunctional, so this could be an obstacle," U.S. Secretary of State Rubio said on Friday while discussing Iran's expected response to the Trump administration's latest proposal to end the war.
U.S. intelligence assessments have indicated that killing the former Supreme Leader is unlikely to overthrow the regime. "Even if you eliminate Khamenei, his successor will still be a hardliner," a source said. Predictions from U.S. intelligence, as described by multiple sources, have been corroborated: a government in Iran largely controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other figures ideologically aligned with those who have been eliminated.
Since the death of the elder Khamenei, Trump has boasted that Iran has undergone a regime change and described those now representing Tehran in negotiations as "reasonable." "We are dealing with people no one has ever dealt with before."
Ali Vaez, Director of the Iran Project at the International Crisis Group, stated that regardless of whether the new Supreme Leader can help lead negotiations, "the system is using him to gain final approval on major broad decisions rather than (to) shape negotiation strategies." "The system will indeed emphasize Mojtaba's involvement because it provides a protective shield against internal criticism... unlike his father, who regularly made statements discussing the progress of negotiations," he added. "Mojtaba's absence means attributing views to him offers Iranian negotiators a perfect cover to protect themselves from criticism."
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1864669234365449/
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