TEHRAN, Iran — “Fatwa.” That was the magic word in US President Barack Obama’s Sept. 24 speech at the UN General Assembly when referring to Iran’s nuclear program. When Obama turned to the fatwa, the so-called hard-liners in Tehran knew something serious was happening in New York. Obama may as well have said, “This can be our starting point.”  

After the speech, an informed Reformist source reminded Al-Monitor, “The fatwa isn’t new, and Ayatollah Khamenei has highlighted it several times, as did the former president [Mahmoud Ahmadinejad].” Indeed, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued the fatwa against the pursuit and possession of nuclear weapons on Feb. 22, 2012. 

Assessing what Obama had done, the source continued, “But those at the top in Tehran believe Obama wanted to send a clear message to them — that the US is ready for the confidence-building process.” The source further explained that a decision had been made in Tehran, with the blessings of Ayatollah Khamenei, to seize every opportunity to respond to the issue of the nuclear program. He added, “Given that Iran has nothing to hide, mutual trust will certainly lead to a place where both Iran and the West can manage their differences.”

These differences have affected relations between Tehran and Washington since the 1979  Islamic revolution, and in fact, have grown with each passing year, until they became seemingly unresolvable, with both countries seeking to sabotage the other. No attempt to find common ground came to fruition.