Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s personal website has republished an article by Kayhan newspaper that responded to reports about US President Barack Obama’s letter offering Iran cooperation against the Islamic State (IS) if a nuclear deal is signed by Nov. 24. Though the newspaper does not always specifically reflect Ayatollah Khamenei's views, the fact that this article was republished on his website is a rare endorsement of some of the views expressed in the article.

Obama’s letter, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, initially received straightforward coverage from Iranian news agencies and brief mentions on Iranian TV. In recent days, there has been more coverage, especially the foreign media reacting to the letter.

The article by Sadollah Zarei in Kayhan, who is sometimes erroneously referred to as the “mouthpiece” of Ayatollah Khamenei, did not confirm the existence of the letter. It also does not shed any light on Iran’s position in the nuclear talks or mentions the talks taking place between Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry in Oman.

Two of the most notable points in the article, however, are that the writer believes that Obama’s previous letters were followed by hostile acts from the United States against Iran. The article also sheds light on how the conservative faction in Iran views the latest developments in Iraq, a view that is not shared by officials within the Hassan Rouhani administration, who have advocated for Iran-US cooperation against IS.