Hardliners Call for Zarif to be Impeached

Hardliners have put forward a bill to impeach Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, and if approved, it will be the first time in the 40-year history of the Islamic Republic a foreign minister has faced impeachment proceedings. 

The bill was submitted to the directorate of the parliament, which will decide whether it will go to the floor. The call for impeachment arose following statements Zarif made on November 11, when he conceded that money laundering is rife in Iran, and that people with close links to the regime are some of the biggest profiteers.

But is impeachment legally credible?

 

The Legal Basis for the Impeachment

The author of the bill, Hossein-Ali Haji-Deligani, published the text on the Tasnim News Agency website, citing Article 220 of the Rules of Procedure of the Islamic Parliament of Iran as its basis. 

According to this article, parliament’s directorate must announce that it has received the motion for impeachment. If this does not happen or the signatories rescind their signatures before the directorate announces the receipt, then Zarif must appear on the floor of the parliament and answer questions put to him by the representatives.

What are the Main Reasons for Impeachment?

The parliament has the power to go through impeachment proceedings even if Zarif fails to show up. 

The present impeachment bill asks 11 questions. But considering the questions asked in the bill, is his impeachment legal? Among the 11 questions put forth, four are central to the impeachment: The charge of money laundering against the Islamic Republic regime, the arrest of Iranian diplomats in Europe, failure to use “resistance forces” in the Middle East and posing danger to Iranian defense capabilities.

After talking about widespread money laundering in Iran, the foreign minister came under unprecedented attacks by opponents of Rouhani’s administration. Even the judiciary chief Sadegh Larijani called his statements “a dagger in the heart of the regime” and demanded that he provide evidence for his claim.

Subsequently, Zarif did submit 11 pages of evidence about money laundering to the judiciary and, very likely, he is prepared to answer questions on this subject at the possible impeachment proceedings. However, there is something else to consider. It is quite likely that exposing the extent of money laundering in Iran before the parliament is highly undesirable for Iranian authorities, including the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, who has often counseled silence when it comes to problems and crises in Iran.

The foreign ministry is usually accountable for the actions of Iranian diplomats abroad, but in recent years other government entities have interfered in the affairs of the foreign ministry to such an extent that, a few months before his death in 2017, former president Hashemi Rafsanjani said interference by the Revolutionary Guards’ expeditionary Quds Force in the region prevents the foreign ministry from performing its rightful duties.

The impeachment notice also accuses Zarif of failure to use the capabilities of “resistance forces” in the region. In the language of the Islamic Republic of Iran, “resistance forces” are those groups in the Middle East, such as the Lebanese Hezbollah, who define themselves as enemies of the state of Israel.

 

A Figurehead for Iranian Foreign Policy

In theory, the foreign minister is accountable for foreign policies, but in Iran this is not always the case. It is not the foreign minister that communicates with the “resistance groups” or acts as the intermediary between them and the Iranian government officials and authorities, but the Quds Force. In recent years, the foreign ministry has played no role in supporting these groups or in the fight against ISIS and, therefore, the parliament cannot ask the foreign minister — whoever he might be — to answer questions in this regard.

Even ambassadors to countries like Iraq and Lebanon are chosen under the direct supervision of the Revolutionary Guards and the Quds Force. For example, Iraj Masjedi, Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, served for years as a brigadier general with the Quds Force and took part in its foreign missions. There are reports that other ambassadors are also chosen with the consent of military and security agencies affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards and that part of their mission is defined and assigned by the Guards, not by the government or foreign ministry.

With this in mind, it is not inconceivable that Iranian diplomatic delegations, including those in Europe, might take actions without the full knowledge of the government or of the foreign ministry. For example, recently Kamal Kharrazi, a former foreign minister who Ayatollah Khamenei appointed as head of the Foreign Affairs Strategic Council told French TV during a visit to France that “certain rogue elements” were probably responsible for the failed terror plots in France and Denmark.

In other words, even an Iranian official in his position is not confident or knowledgeable enough to categorically deny the government’s involvement in such incidents.

 

What would a Lawful Impeachment Look Like?

The current impeachment bill also refers to statements that Zarif had made five years ago and sets out plans to question him about them too. In late 2013, in his early months as foreign minister he delivered a speech to a gathering of university students, during which he told them: “The westerners are not afraid of our handful of tanks and missiles...Do you imagine that America is afraid of our military when it can destroy all our military systems with one bomb?”

Since making these statements, Zarif has been criticized repeatedly by military officials and hardliners. However, the main reason for raising them in the impeachment bill is to add weight to the case against him.

Article 89 of the Islamic Republic’s constitution gives the parliament the power to impeach members of the government. It is quite legal to subject him to questioning in the parliament or even dismiss him from office.

But under these circumstances — when the foreign ministry neither sets important foreign policies nor carries them out — the impeachment of Zarif, and his possible answers to the questions from parliamentarians, can make current crises in Iran even worse. Even his prudent silence can further damage the prestige of President Rouhani and his administration.

 

Related Coverage:

Zarif Admits Money Laundering is Rife in Iran, November 14, 2018

Our Economy is Corrupt to the Core. No, It’s Even Worse!, August 27, 2018

Iran’s Medicine Shortage: More About Corruption and Mismanagement Than Sanctions, September 7, 2018

Money Laundering and Terrorism: Rouhani vs the Revolutionary Guards, September 7, 2016