Macron spoke by phone to Trump and Pezeshkian... What did he say to his Iranian counterpart?
French President Emmanuel Macron by phone on Sunday with his American counterpart Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian, on the eve of his trip to Cyprus amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East.
said Macron, the first Western leader to speak with Pezeshkian since the outbreak of hostilities,
He added that “Iran must also guarantee freedom of navigation by ending its closure of the Strait of Hormuz.”
Macron did not disclose any details of his conversation with Trump.
The French president reiterated to his Iranian counterpart his “deep concern regarding Iran’s development of its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and regarding all its destabilizing activities in the region,” noting that “the current crisis has resulted from this.”
Trump threatens the new leader
threatened Donald Trump that any Supreme Leader new Iran must obtain his approval and that he “wouldn’t be around for long” without it, just hours after Tehran announced its selection of a successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the US-Israeli attack on the Islamic Republic.
said Trump Speaking to ABC News,
Members of the Assembly of Experts, the 88-member body of clerics elected by popular vote that selects the Supreme Leader, announced earlier on Sunday that they had reached an agreement on a successor to Khamenei.
The Supreme Leader is the head of the power structure in Iran and has the final say on all major policies. The Islamic Republic has had two Supreme Leaders since its establishment in 1979: the founder of the revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini, and Khamenei, who succeeded him in 1989.
Iran rejects Trump's statements
This is not the first time Trump has suggested he has a role in appointing Iran's next Supreme Leader after Khamenei's death, a claim Tehran has categorically rejected.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi reiterated this on Sunday, telling NBC News that Tehran "will not allow anyone to interfere" in its internal affairs.
He emphasized that "it is up to the Iranian people to elect their new leader."
