TEHRAN, Iran — The general feeling in Tehran was mixed when Catherine Ashton, high representative for foreign affairs and security policy for the European Union, arrived on March 8.
Government officials, especially those at the Foreign Ministry, celebrated Ashton's visit as solid proof that their months-long efforts had borne fruit in lifting the diplomatic siege that Iran had endured over so many years.
According to one senior official in the Hassan Rouhani administration, Ashton's visit, following on trips to Tehran by the foreign ministers of Belgium, Italy, Poland, Spain and Sweden in the last few months, was "a clear indication the EU wants better relations with Iran after many concerns were raised." The official added, "The former administration presented the country in a different way. They never took into consideration others' perception of us. They only wanted to say, 'We are strong,' but failed to deliver the extra mile by diffusing concerns."
In the meantime, conservatives turned a wary eye toward Ashton's time in Tehran, posing questions about next steps and whether Rouhani's team was agreeable regarding what transpired during her visit. "How did they agree that Ashton meet those women involved in the 1388 [post-2009 presidential elections] crisis, which was disgraceful," wondered one conservative source. He also asked why Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his aides had not taken Ashton to meet the children of assassinated nuclear scientists. According to him, "That should have been a priority. Ashton should have felt the pain the families are going through and their position on the nuclear talks."
The government in Tehran dealt with critics without directly commenting, as there was, according to the government official, a real need to engage in a different way with the West. "They need us, and we [them]. There are a lot of complicated things to sort out with the Europeans. We want better relations, but in accordance with our rights. We have the full right to have a peaceful nuclear program. They have to admit this."
Ashton and Iranian officials touched on several issues related to the region. When asked about their talks by Al-Monitor, Michael Mann, Ashton's spokesman, offered, "Mrs. Ashton discussed [the] broader issues, including both Syria and Afghanistan." He added that the potential exists for better relations, but everything depends on developments with respect to the final nuclear deal.
Not much information is being offered by the European side as far as the results of Ashton's visit, but sources in Tehran believe that it represents the actual start of long-term cooperation between Iran and the EU. According to Al-Monitor's source, President Rouhani told Ashton that common ground and mutual interests between Iran and the EU should serve as the impetus for greater cooperation in several areas, including combating terrorism and extremism, dealing with the situations in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq and improving economic conditions.
The source revealed that differences arose, however, when the two sides discussed Syria. The Iranians suggested a solution could be reached through elections, at which point the European envoy asserted that the problem is much deeper and much more complicated than elections could resolve. She emphasized that there is a real need for change to pave the way for a real solution. No agreement was reached on details for resolving the crisis, but both sides agreed that a political solution was the only way to limit the bloodshed.
Concerning the nuclear issue, Ashton met with Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and Adm. Ali Shamkhani, secretary-general of the Supreme National Security Council, thus giving her an opportunity to better ascertain what the top-level leadership is thinking. Velayati, a former foreign minister, drew Iran's red lines, and according to Al-Monitor's source, explained to Ashton the leadership's approach in this respect, as did Shamkhani.
The source explained that Ashton and her team were mainly listeners, and that the impression in Iran is that they were in Tehran to gain insight into Iran's perspective, not to explain their position. The visit had a diplomatic purpose, but it was not directly related to the nuclear talks. Moreover, it was not even aimed at changing or affecting the diplomatic track.
