Javad Zarif resigns as Iran’s vice president 

Iran’s vice president for strategic affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif, who served as Iran’s foreign minister from 2013 to 2021 and advocated negotiations with the US, has resigned after only 10 days in office.

“I am not satisfied with the result of my work [as the head of the Advisory Council]. Along with other issues, it forced me to continue my path at the university,” he said in a post on X. Zarif headed the Advisory Council immediately after Masoud Pezeshkian’s victory in the July 5 presidential election. Zarif was responsible for selecting nominees for the new cabinet, which was submitted to parliament for approval on August 11.

Zarif, a member of the Islamic Republic’s reformist wing, is considered one of the main proponents of dialogue with the United States, for which he has been criticized by Iranian conservatives. He was heavily involved in drafting and negotiating the 2015 nuclear deal. After Pezeshkian’s victory, Zarif issued a statement on the newly elected president’s readiness to restore the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).