Photo: the Iran’s newly-elected president, Masoud Pezeshkian

The ultimate authority over Iran’s major policies lies with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, while the president of Iran holds significant executive power as an executor and implementer of specific policies. In many cases, the Iranian president possesses the ability to exert influence over both domestic and national policies in Iran. This forms the fundamental basis for Pezeshkian to actualize his governing philosophy within the new policy.

I. Domestic policy

During the general election campaign, Pezeshkian presented his economic and foreign policies in televised debates, advocating for intensified efforts to attract foreign investment as a means of alleviating Iran’s economic pressure resulting from years of sanctions. The Guardian reported that Pezeshkian emphasized the necessity for Iran to embrace foreign investment in order to achieve its target of 8 percent economic growth. Furthermore, he strongly urged Iran to adhere to the criteria established by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as a strategy for removal from the FATF blacklist.

Pezeshkian aims to modernize the country and discard certain outdated customs. He opposes the government’s stringent ‘hijab law’ for women and strict regulations on Internet usage. He does not advocate for Westernization. Wang Jin, an assistant director and associate professor of the Institute of Middle East Studies at Northwest University, believes that Pezeshkian may issue governmental decrees to promote the relaxation of relevant policies on these matters. Nevertheless, Pezeshkian might face significant resistance at the parliamentary level regarding his future administrative direction due to interference in domestic politics in Iran, which poses a major challenge for his administration.[1]

II. Foreign Policy

Pezeshkian’s comprehensive description of his foreign policy was published in the Tehran Times. Essentially, Pezeshkian’s foreign policy is grounded in Iran’s unwavering commitment to independence and opposition to hegemony. This policy not only fosters mutual trust with neighboring nations but also endeavors to ease tensions with the United States and western countries while establish new partnerships.

Pezeshkian stated that he would further deepen strategic cooperation with China and Russia, promote national reconciliation in the Middle East, and enhance collaboration with emerging countries, thereby continuing the foreign policy of the Raisis administration. Simultaneously, he also expressed his intention to improve relations with the United States and western countries in order to stimulate economic growth and ensure people’s well-being by lifting sanctions. With regard to the United States, the focus is on managing differences and avoiding escalation of tensions. And the relationship with Europe emphasizes exploring future prospects for strategic relations.

1. Towards China

Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran highly values its friendship with China, and his new Iranian government is eager to further extensive cooperation with China. He highlighted that the 25-year comprehensive cooperation plan between Iran and China signifies a significant milestone in establishing a comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations, while expressing Iran’s anticipation for even more extensive collaboration with China.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian expressed China’s appreciation for President Pezeshkian’s remarks on the bilateral relations between China and Iran. Emphasizing the significance of their comprehensive strategic partnership, China is committed to collaborating with the new Iranian government in order to facilitate stable and sustainable growth.[2]

2. Towards Europe and the United States

Pezeshkian adheres to the moderate political views of Iran’s reformist camp and emphasizes the imperative of improving relations with western countries, including the United States. He prioritizes the lifting of western sanctions in order to rectify Iran’s economy, which has been severely damaged by these sanctions.[3] He urged the United States to acknowledge the prevailing circumstances, emphasizing Iran’s steadfastness against American pressure. Additionally, he called for an end to the fabrication of Iranian nuclear threats, support for Israel’s acquisition of nuclear weapons, and instigation of conflicts among countries in the region. Pezeshkian further accused European countries of breaking their promises and succumbing to the sanctions of the US. Nevertheless, Iran remains eager to engage in strategic dialogue with European nations and explore cooperation opportunities.

Qin Tian, deputy director of the Middle East Institute at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, emphasized that the interaction between Iran and the West and the possibility of restarting Iranian nuclear negotiations depend not only on unilateral actions by Iran but also on changes in the international situation and Western attitudes. “The uncertainty is relatively high due to various variables, including Trump’s potential return to power, as well as factors such as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict”, stated by Qin Tian. US media reports suggest that Pezeshkian has expressed a willingness to prioritize lifting sanctions, indicating a need for reaching a deal with the United States. However, considering Khamenei’s tendency to adopt a hardline stance for most of the time, his expectation should be tempered. Matthew Miller, a spokesman for the State Council told reporters, “We do not anticipate this election leading to a fundamental change in Iran’s direction or policies.[4] In addition, Western media believes that Pezeshkian pledged to alleviate tensions with the West during his presidential campaign, “which fosters hope for enhanced relations with the West.” The West expresses optimism that Tehran will become more open to Atlanticist perspectives.

However, the Russian Foundation for Strategic Culture posits that the West’s calculations regarding Iran’s newly elected president Pezeshkian are unlikely to yield desired outcomes. There will be no substantial shifts in Iran’s foreign policy as Iranians recognize that western animosity towards them does not stem from short-term evaluation or ideological disparities, but from global geopolitical considerations. Tehran regards itself as a cornerstone of an emerging multipolar world, so its interests are closely linked to those of Moscow and Beijing. The new Iranian leadership will not curtail its collaboration with Russia and China to enhance relations with the United States and western nations.[5]

3. Towards Russia

Pezeshkian emphasized that Russia is a crucial ally and neighboring country of Iran, while Iran will persistently enhance and broaden cooperation between the two nations, striving to contribute to the resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In the future, he will prioritize bilateral and multilateral collaboration with Russia, particularly within the frameworks of BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the Eurasian Economic Union.

      4. Towards Middle Eastern Countries

Under the leadership of former president Raisis, Iran also made efforts to alleviate its diplomatic isolation and enhance relations with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. This initiative undoubtedly received the approval of the Supreme Leader, and it is likely to continue under Pezeshkian’s administration. Pezeshkian has emphasized his priority in strengthening relations with neighboring countries, calling for an end to cut throat competition, arms races, and mutual containment among countries in the region. His aim is to deepen economic cooperation and jointly address challenges such as conflicts, terrorism, and foreign interference while moving towards building dialogue, mutual trust, development, and prosperity. He urged Arab countries to cooperate to achieve a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip based on international law and conventions, in order to prevent further escalation of the conflict.

Pezeshkian asserted that his new government would spare no effort to support the resistance forces in West Asia while emphasizing that supporting the “axis of resistance” remains Iran’s core policy. Furthermore, he highlighted Tehran’s consistent support for people in the region who resolutely resist what they perceive as illegal Zionist entities.[6] According to Reuters, this statement aims to underscore the continuity of Iran’s regional foreign policy under its new government. Li Zixin, an assistant researcher at the China Institute of International Studies, suggests that Pezeshkian’s declaration positions him as a reformist Iranian politician committed to upholding Iran’s established stance towards Israel during his presidency.[7]

In and of itself, Pezeshkian’s coming to power is unlikely to exert any significant influence on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which is mainly centered on the continuous confrontation between Hamas and Israel. Iran’s Middle East policy is unlikely to change substantially under the leadership of Pezeshkian. Notably, Pezeshkian has expressed willingness to engage with all nations except for Israel. According to the Israel Times, Israeli Foreign Minister Katz declared that ‘the world must designate the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization, demand that it cancel its nuclear program and stop providing support to it. This is the only chance to achieve transformation.’ [8]

5. Towards the Third World Countries

Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran will be committed to establishing mutually beneficial cooperation with countries in the south of the world, particularly African countries, and will continue to explore the potential for cooperation with Latin American countries.

Reference

Kong Zhiyu: Iranian President-elect Pezeshkian explains the foreign policy of the new government: looking forward to wider cooperation with China, Wenhui Newspaper, 2024.07.16, https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1804661702433103370&

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Reference news: US media: Iran’s new president has limited opportunities to seek the lifting of sanctions in the West, July 14, 2024, Cited from Daniel Baiman, Catherine Traujer: Can Iran’s new president change Iran’s confrontational foreign policy? Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2024.07.09, https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1804520994141170966&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0 %E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

An Jing: What will happen to Iran after welcoming the reformist president after three years? , 2024.07.06, https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=180382774912094860

4&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

[1] Nanboyi, Li Yibin: Iran elected a new president, ‘domestic and foreign policies may be loosened’, World Wide Web, 2024.07.07, Cited from Pengpai News,https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1803886375160390280&wfr=spi

der&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9Fhttps://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1803886375160390280&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

[2] Li Yue, Zhao Anqi: Iranian President-elect says he looks forward to deepening cooperation with China, and China responds, China Youth Daily, 2024.07.15,https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1804646823187837387&wfr=spider&

for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

[3] Governor of Chang ‘an Avenue: Iran elected a new president,2024.07.06,https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=18

03800195411928593&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

[4] Taihai Net: The White House predicted that the new Iranian president would not change his foreign policy, 2024.07.09, Cited from Reference News Network,https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1804089904187182852

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[5] Overseas network: Russian media: The West’s ‘calculation’ of the new Iranian president will fail, 2024.07.15, Cited from Russian Strategic and Cultural Foundation Network: Why will the West’s calculation of the new Iranian president Pezeshkian fail? -Iran’s foreign policy will not change significantly, 2024.07.09,https://baijiahao.baidu.c

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[6] Reference news: Iran’s new president: will spare no effort to support the ‘axis of resistance’,2024.07.09,https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1804086411912697929&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

[7] International Online: Iran’s latest statement shows that the new government will continue its current foreign policy,2024.07.10,https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1804175845045493828&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchwor

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[8]World Wide Web: Foreign media: Iran elected a new president, and the Israeli Foreign Minister voiced that the world must rank the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard as a ‘terrorist organization’,2024.07.07, https://baijiaha

o.baidu.com/s?id=1803902135989571312&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9Fhttps://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1803902135989571312&wfr=spider&for=pc&searchword=%E4%BC%8A%E6%9C%97%E6%96%B0%E6%80%BB%E7%BB%9F.

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