Iran's Leadership Reveals Divergent Views on Potential Deal with US

Tehran, Iran – Iran's leadership has not closed the door on a potential deal with the United States, but hawkish voices on both sides are making demands that render any understanding elusive.

More than three months into the war, Washington and Tehran have yet to agree on how to handle international shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran asserted control over the waterway and the U.S. blockaded Iranian ports. It remains unclear whether the two sides can reach a longer-term agreement on uranium enrichment and the buried uranium stockpile in Iran, or on the lifting of U.S. and U.N. sanctions against Iran.

U.S. forces and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have clashed in recent days, with Tehran accusing Washington of repeatedly violating a ceasefire reached in early April. Israeli media reported online that a Sunday evening explosion at an apartment building in Andisheh, Tehran, was a targeted assassination of an IRGC general, but Iranian media said it was a gas leak.

Iran's top military, religious, and political leaders, along with state institutions, continue to insist there will be no "surrender" amid deep suspicion of the United States, but subtle differences remain in their stances.

Below is a look at the leadership and their positions:

Mojtaba Khamenei

The son of the assassinated Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was chosen to head the theocratic and military structure shortly after being reportedly wounded in airstrikes that killed his father and other family members.

He has not appeared publicly or spoken to the public, aside from written messages attributed to him, amid concerns he is a potential target for assassination by the U.S. and Israel. He does not wield the same influence as his father, who held absolute power for nearly 37 years, but by law his approval is required for major decisions.

In his messages, Khamenei does not position himself as opposed to negotiations but stresses that "the bright future of the Persian Gulf region will be one without the U.S. and serving the progress, peace, and welfare of regional nations."

He also regards Iran's nuclear and missile programs as "national assets" that must be protected like territorial borders; calls on supporters and armed forces to continue taking to the streets every night to protest the U.S. and Israel; and signals that he expects sanctions against Iran to remain in place, urging the country to prepare for another year of a "resistance economy."

Military-Security Bloc

Military and security factions led by IRGC generals have gained new influence during the U.S.-Israel war on Iran.

Top commanders running the war have refrained from public statements on the details of talks with the U.S., but are believed to have access to Khamenei and wield enormous influence in shaping decision-making. They have signaled a hardline stance against major concessions to U.S. President Donald Trump.

IRGC Commander Ahmad Vahidi focuses his narrative on deterrence, escalation dominance if necessary, and achieving "victory" over what he describes as a "failed superpower" and its closest ally, Israel. He warns of a "destructive, hellish response on a regional and trans-regional scale" if war resumes.

Commander of Khatam al-Anbiya Central Command, Ali Abdollahi, insists that "security of the Strait of Hormuz is led by Iran's armed forces," and that they are ready to open fire on adversaries if needed.

Last week, Major General Majid Mousavi, head of the IRGC's aerospace division — the unit that launched missiles across the region during the war — echoed the late leader Khamenei's words that "negotiating with the enemy is pure loss."

Former IRGC commander Mohammad Ali Jafari, now leading the Baqiatallah Command, last month laid out five conditions for talks to yield results: ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon and other areas of the Tehran-backed "axis of resistance"; lifting sanctions; releasing frozen assets; paying war reparations; and recognizing Iran's sovereignty over Hormuz.

Another veteran IRGC member, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, now serves as an arbiter in his role as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, whose previous head, Ali Larijani, was also assassinated during the war.

Only a short written message has been released from him since taking office, stating "there will be no surrender or retreat" while emphasizing "unity" among the state's supporters.

Jalili's Paydari Faction and Hardline MPs

The Paydari Front, led by Saeed Jalili, a longtime figure on the Supreme National Security Council, is believed to represent some of the most hardline factions within Iran.

Jalili served as the top security official and lead negotiator with Western powers from 2007 to 2013 during much of populist President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's tenure.

Years of talks failed at that time, before the now-collapsed 2015 nuclear deal was reached under President Hassan Rouhani, and Iran faced harsh U.N. sanctions over its nuclear program.

Jalili has operated as a hardline, maximalist opponent of engagement with the West and concessions, and considers Ali Bagheri Kani, the lead negotiator under former President Ebrahim Raisi, as one of his top allies.

During the war, Jalili has framed talks as only acceptable as a recognition of Iran's strength, insisting that guarantees must be secured so that any long-term deal does not rely on "trusting" the U.S., and saying that sanctions, assassinations, and war are enemy "leverage" that must be fully "neutralized."

"Today, the world clearly sees that the new (regional) order will not be established by the U.S. and the Zionist regime (Israel), but by victories and the powerful discourse of resistance," he said in April.

Jalili is backed by a range of ultra-conservative MPs from Tehran and other cities, who have dominated Iran's parliament since 2020 in elections with record-low voter turnout.

Among those MPs are influential religious figures Mahmoud Nabavian and Hamid Rasaei, as well as legislators such as Ebrahim Azizi, Abbas Moqtadaei, and other members of the parliamentary national security committee.

The Government's Face

Iran's Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, led the Iranian negotiating team in the first round of mediated talks with the U.S. in Pakistan in April. Ghalibaf is a former IRGC commander who also condemns "surrender" but says he supports a pragmatic deal to end hostilities.

President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi have also made similar remarks supporting a negotiated peace that guarantees Iran's interests.

State Media and IRGC-Affiliated Outlets

Some of the harshest stances are broadcast through state television (IRIB).

State TV channels frequently use presenters and various guests, including masked military commanders, to convey messages, or more recently conduct gun training for supporters and call on them to "sacrifice" for the state.

They have also discussed terms "acceptable" to Iran for an interim deal, including control of the Strait of Hormuz, vessel classification and transit fees, and swift access to at least $12 billion in frozen assets abroad.

Then there are the Tasnim, Fars, Mehr, and other IRGC-affiliated news outlets, which broadcast messages from the establishment and have floated extreme ideas such as charging fees for undersea internet cables.

The ultra-conservative newspaper Keyhan has also proven a pillar of broadcasting maximalist stances for decades, with its editor-in-chief Hossein Shariatmadari — appointed by Ali Khamenei — consistently calling on Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz, withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and seriously consider building a nuclear bomb.