TEHRAN: Supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s contact is currently “very difficult,” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said during a state television interview Wednesday.
The interview, published by Mehr News on August 5, marked Pezeshkian’s second anniversary in office.
Pezeshkian described Khamenei’s presence as a major source of strength for Iran’s government. He did not explain why contacting the supreme leader was difficult.
Former Trump administration official Victoria Coates said on Wednesday that Iran’s leadership was struggling to communicate, following comments by President Masoud Pezeshkian that contact with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was “very difficult” at the moment.
Their top leadership can’t even communicate. Get the Strait open, keep the pressure on and let nature take its course,” she posted on X.
Reuters reported Khamenei has made no public appearances since succeeding his father in March. The Assembly of Experts selected Khamenei on March 8, making him Iran’s third supreme leader.
His father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was martyred in joint US-Israeli strikes on February 28. During Wednesday’s interview, Pezeshkian rejected reports of divisions over government decisions.
Read: Trump Believes Mojtaba Khamenei Probably Not Alive
He said Khamenei accepted an Iran-US memorandum after 12 of 13 Supreme National Security Council members supported it.
According to Pezeshkian, Khamenei had promised to accept proposals winning three-quarters of the council’s votes. Pezeshkian also called Khamenei exceptional in ethics, logic and humility.
He said open presentations of government problems helped officials reach agreements. In May, Pezeshkian said he held a 2½-hour meeting with Khamenei. He described that earlier meeting as cordial, direct and based on trust.
