Trump sends letter, singer flogged—and more
The Iranist for the week of March 7, 2025
THE هفت/SEVEN THINGS TO KNOW THIS WEEK:
۱/1 Russia open to mediating, Trump sends letter
On March 4, Bloomberg News reported that Russia had agreed to do outreach on behalf of the Donald Trump administration to Iran on its nuclear program and proxies. President Trump “relayed that interest directly to President Vladimir Putin in a phone call in February and top officials from his administration discussed the matter with their Russian counterparts at talks in Saudi Arabia days later,” according to sources.
Last week, Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida had reported that Moscow offered to mediate between the US and Iran (MEMO). Per the report:
“The new American offer includes conducting gradual negotiations starting with talks at the expert level, and if these talks yield tangible progress, negotiations will move to the level of foreign ministers, in preparation for signing a direct agreement between President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian.”
Responding to the Bloomberg report, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “Russia believes that the United States and Iran should resolve all problems through negotiations” and that Moscow “is ready to do everything in its power to achieve this.” The Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson noted that it was “natural” for countries to offer to mediate.
On March 5, The Kremlin said that future talks between Moscow and Washington would include discussions about Iran’s nuclear program (Reuters). On March 6, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov discussed international efforts related to Iran’s nuclear program with the Iranian ambassador to Moscow (Reuters).
Interestingly, the failed talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his US counterpart last week have reignited calls for why the United States cannot be trusted in negotiations (Amwaj.media). A billboard in Tehran quickly went up of Trump lecturing Zelensky that read: “The result of relying on the wind #LessonsOfUkraine.” (X) Some pro-regime accounts even compared Zelensky to the late Shah of Iran because many Iranians believe President Jimmy Carter threw the former US ally under the bus (X).
Some Iranian officials, analysts, and even ordinary Iranians don’t trust Moscow because of their opposition to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal at the time and because of the 1828 Treaty of Turkmenchay between Qajar Iran and Tzarist Russia that ceded Iranian territories. As Iran-based analyst Mohamad Hossein Ebrahimi noted, “Everyone is wondering if Trump does this with allies, what will he do with the enemy?” (New York Times)
Separately, several senior Russian missile specialists visited Iran between April and September of 2024—around the time of the tit-for-tats with Israel (Reuters).
TRUMP SENDS LETTER On March 7, US President Trump said during an interview with Fox Business Network, that he sent a letter to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei the day prior:
“I didn’t say you better [negotiate]… I said I hope you’re going to negotiate, because it’s going to be a lot better for Iran. I think they want to get that letter. The other alternative is we have to do something, because you can’t let another nuclear weapon.” (Reuters)
Trump said the US could use military force or make a deal, but prefers the latter. He argued that he knows many Iranians that “they’re great people” and “have a tough regime” and he’s “not sure everyone agrees with him.”
Israeli sources told YNet News that Trump’s letter to Khamenei didn’t come out of nowhere. Tehran reportedly reached out to the United States via Switzerland to explore potential talks due to comments about Trump’s openness for a nuclear deal from various US officials and because they're concerned about snapback sanctions.
The Iranian mission to the United Nations in New York denied receiving a letter (Reuters).
On March 7, President Trump told reporters:
“We’re down to final strokes with Iran. That’s going to be an interesting time. And we’ll see what happens. But we’re down to the final moments. Final moments. Can’t let them have a nuclear weapon. We have a situation with Iran that something’s going to happen very soon... Hopefully we can have a peace deal. You know, I’m not speaking out of strength or weakness. I’m just saying I’d rather see a peace deal than the other, but the other will solve the problem.” (Reuters).
Meanwhile, the US and Israeli Air Forces held joint exercises, during which pilots “practiced operational coordination between the two militaries to enhance their ability to address various regional threats.” (Times of Israel) The drill included Israeli F-15I and F-35I fighter jets flying alongside a US B-52 bomber—the type of aircraft needed for taking out Iran’s fortified underground nuclear sites.
۲/2 Two key ministers ousted from Pezeshkian’s cabinet
On March 2, two ministers in Masoud Pezeshkian’s cabinet were ousted due to pressure from hardliners, who have been attacking the so-called reformist president and his administration since taking office in July 2024 (New York Times). The hardline-dominated parliament impeached Economy and Finance Minister Abdolnaser Hemmati 182-89 for his handling of the economy, particularly the plunging currency. According to state media, “he had failed to prevent price increases in basic goods such as medicine, food and housing while being unable to control the foreign exchange market.” (Reuters) The Iranian rial lost half its value to the US dollar in eight months.
Hemmati defended his brief tenure by pointing out that deep structural problems predate him, including corruption and poverty (Financial Times).
The now former economy and finance minister noted:
“About 80 percent of people are being crushed by what smugglers, sanctions profiteers, and those with special privileges are doing. The budget deficit . . . is tied to international developments.”
On the same day, the head of the judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, pushed out First Vice President for Strategic Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif, who then handed in his resignation (The Guardian). Zarif, known as the Hassan Rouhani era foreign minister that negotiated the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), has long been a target of hardliners for that very deal. The resignation marked the second time Zarif has attempted to resign as Pezeshkian’s vice president. (He also briefly resigned under the Rouhani presidency after not being made aware of a visit to Tehran by then-Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.) Multiple senior Iranian sources claim that “Zarif’s current resignation is neither voluntary nor a ploy to gain leverage.” (Amwaj.media)
The former vice president reportedly violated a 2022 law that bans individuals with ties to the west from holding government roles. Zarif’s children—who live in Iran—reportedly have dual nationality because they were born in the United States while he was a student. If this law is implemented in its entirety, other officials in Pezeshkian’s cabinet could get the axe (Amwaj.media)
On March 2, Zarif wrote on X:
“…faced the most horrible insults, slander and threats against myself and my family, and I have gone through the most bitter period of my 40 years of service. To avoid further pressure on the government, the head of the judiciary recommended that I resign and... I accepted immediately.”
Many analysts believe Zarif's departure is tied to his push for talks with the United States, which hardliners oppose.
President Pezeshkian seemed visibly angry while delivering a speech in parliament on the same day:
“We are in an all-out war with the enemy [the US]. The war with Iraq was nothing [in comparison]. The enemy wants us to show division. How can we bring about major economic change in just six months?” (Financial Times)
Interestingly, he took a different position than the Supreme Leader, noting, “My belief was that talks are better, but the Supreme Leader has said we do not negotiate with the US and we will go forward in the direction of the statements of our top leader.” (AP)
The ouster of key ministers has proven costly for the Iranian president. As the New York Times reports:
“Some who voted for [Pezeshkian] and campaigned for him said on social media that they regretted their support and felt duped, once again, by a system that keeps dangling promises of reform at the ballot box but refuses to budge once in office.”
Meanwhile, two former Ebrahim Raisi-era ministers received short prison sentences for a $3.7 billion embezzlement scheme in Iran—the largest in the country’s history. (Al-Monitor) The lenient sentencing for former Agriculture Minister Javad Sadatinejad (two years in prison) and former Industry Minister Reza Fatemi Amin (one year in prison) has outraged Iranians as millions continue to struggle under deteriorating economic conditions.
IRANIANS ARE STRUGGLING This time of year, Iranians usually buy gifts and shop for new clothes and other items ahead of Nowruz, the Iranian new year, but now the “people have lost their purchasing power” and “everyone is complaining” about the economic situation (AFP). Things are so bad that some shops have also shut down.
One shop keeper explained:
“People are collapsing under poverty, yet the Islamic Republic does nothing to ease their suffering. The streets are full of window-shoppers who can’t afford anything, and business owners are struggling with rising utility bills.” (Iran International)
Meanwhile, according to Statistical Center of Iran, the price of potatoes has skyrocketed 217 percent during the past Iranian calendar year. (Iran International)
۳/3 Singer Mehdi Yarrahi flogged 74x for song about removing hijab
Iranian celebrities and activists inside the country condemned the sentence that was carried out (Iran International/X).
Meanwhile, actress Soheila Golestani is also facing 74 lashes for starring in the Oscar-nominated film, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”. (The Times) She was also banned from leaving Iran to attend the Academy Awards. (Read more about the Oscars in ۵/5)
On March 1, the actors and directors of “My Favorite Cake,” an Iranian film that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival, went on trial (Iran International). They are facing charges of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic,” “producing a film with obscene content,” “offending public decency,” and “screening a film without a permit.”
۴/4 Turkey, Iran summon diplomats after Ankara criticizes Tehran's backing of proxies
۵/5 Iranian animated short wins Oscar, despite odds
Learn more about Shirin Sohani and Hossein Molayemi’s film, “In the Shadow of the Cypress”. Watch the Academy Award-winning short.
Another Iranian film, Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” was nominated Best International Feature Film but didn’t win. Regardless, there was a new age of Iranian cinema on display at the Oscars (New York Times).
۶/6 Mother of Pouya Bakhtiari on hunger strike after attempting suicide
۷/7 UK to put Iran on highest tier of foreign influence register
The Iranian foreign ministry refuted what it called “accusations” made by London that it was trying to threaten the security of the United Kingdom (Reuters).
OTHER اخبار/NEWS THAT MADE HEADLINES:
Human Rights
۰ Iran executes 8; thousands more wait on death row (VOA)
۰ Ali Khalili hanged for drug offences in Sari (Iran Human Rights)
۰ Female singer arrested during live performance in Tehran (Iran International)
۰ Asylum seekers like me are a wasted resource' (BBC)
۰ Gender apartheid is crushing women’s lives and futures (CHRI)
۰ Deported by US, Iranian Christian convert stranded in Panama jungle camp (Iran International)
Domestic Issues
۰ Nine police officers detained after 5-year-old’s death (IranWire)
۰ Lawyer’s statement prevents Cristiano Ronaldo from traveling to Tehran (IranWire)
۰ Iran closes 17 businesses accused of violating Ramadan rites (VOA)
۰ At TEDxTehran, young Iranians reimagine their future (Financial Times)
Foreign Policy + Security
۰ US mulls plan to disrupt Iran’s oil by halting vessels at sea (Reuters)
۰ US foreign aid cuts threaten to choke off information from Iran (Washington Post)
۰ Trump’s Pentagon policy chief pick signals more military pressure on Iran (Al-Monitor)
۰ Large cyberattack emanated from Iran days after Trump sanctions – watchdogs (Iran International)
۰ Iran unveils new ‘stealth fighter’ drone for bombing and reconnaissance (Telegraph)
۰ Netanyahu thanks Trump for weapons to ‘finish the job’ against Iran axis (New Arab)
۰ Iran looking to launch eastern terror front against Israel, Katz warns (Jerusalem Post)
۰ Iran alarmed by growing Israel-Azerbaijan ties, warns of US involvement (Jerusalem Post)
۰ Iran releases 1st video of Israeli-linked ship seized last April (PressTV)
۰ New Iran-backed group wants to fight plans to ‘divide’ Syria (Al-Monitor)
Iran Deal + Sanctions
۰ US will collapse Iran’s economy by shutting down its oil industry, Treasury secretary says (CNBC)
۰ State Dept says all waivers providing Iran economic relief are under review (Reuters)
۰ Deported by US, Iranian Christian convert stranded in Panama jungle camp (Iran International)
۰ Iran says UK, Germany and France cannot trigger renewed UN sanctions (Iran International)
۰ Iran using smaller ships to skirt sanctions in China oil trade (Bloomberg)
۰ Toronto man who helped Iran evade sanctions used 3 identities, CBSA reveals (Global News)
Economy + Trade
۰ Iran’s non-oil export to Oman increases 14% (Tehran Times)
۰ Iran begins Turkmenistan-to-Turkey gas transit, boosting regional ties (The Media Line)
Arts + Culture
۰ Once a crumbling relic of old Iran, brewery reborn as arts hub (AFP)