Key Takeaways:
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday rejected claims he has tried to resign 28 times, as rival factions invoke an unseen supreme leader to settle a power struggle that threatens to complicate any deal with Washington.
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday denied he has repeatedly sought to resign, dismissing as "pure fabrication" claims he threatened to step down 28 times, as rival factions invoke an unseen supreme leader to settle a power struggle.
"I will not resign, and I will stand firm," Pezeshkian said in a preview of an interview on state television, insisting his government remains fully coordinated with Iran's military leadership.
The denial followed allegations from senior cleric Mohammad-Bagher Kharrazi, a relative of the Khamenei family by marriage, who claimed the president had threatened to resign 28 times and was warned his next resignation would be accepted. The President's Office called the account baseless, while Iran International reported in May that Pezeshkian had submitted a resignation letter arguing his government was being excluded from major decisions as hardliners consolidated control.
The dispute carries market consequences. Iran sits atop the Strait of Hormuz, which handles about 21 percent of global oil trade, and any perception of leadership instability adds an uncertainty premium to crude even as Washington and Tehran trade contradictory accounts of a diplomatic push.
The competing claims center on Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in any publicly released video or audio since succeeding his father, according to Iran International. Iranian officials have offered conflicting accounts of how often senior figures have met him. Iran International reported Pezeshkian met Khamenei only once, inside a vehicle with tinted windows at an undisclosed location, while the president has described a two-and-a-half-hour cordial encounter.
"The very essence of this system is built on a godfather," said Kasra Aarabi, director of IRGC research at United Against Nuclear Iran. "If the godfather is absent, that vacuum re-emerges between the various Islamist oligarchic clans." Aarabi said factions are competing over raw power and economic interests, not ideology, and that Khamenei's name has become a political instrument each clan invokes to legitimize itself.
The pressure extends beyond the presidency. Lawmaker Hosseinali Hajideligani said parliament was gathering evidence to pursue the impeachment of Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, accusing him of engaging in inappropriate talks during the U.S. ceasefire. Kharrazi separately claimed Araghchi had been told he would no longer oversee nuclear negotiations, an assertion no official body has confirmed.
The threat against Araghchi is significant as Washington and Tehran offer contradictory accounts of the latest diplomatic effort. U.S. President Donald Trump says talks are already underway and has described the effort as Tehran's "last chance," while Iranian officials deny direct negotiations are taking place, saying Tehran is only speaking with Oman about navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
The internal discord could make any agreement harder to approve and enforce. Even if Pezeshkian and Araghchi support an arrangement, hardliners in parliament and the security establishment could block it or portray it as a surrender of Iranian sovereignty. For markets, the risk is twofold: a prolonged leadership vacuum raises the odds of policy drift on the nuclear file, while any escalation around the Strait of Hormuz would hit crude directly. The last time Iran threatened to close the strait, in 2019, Brent crude jumped more than 14 percent within days before retreating.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
