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Washington: It has been a long time since Mojtaba Khamenei was declared Iran’s new supreme leader following the assassination of his father. Iranians have yet to see or hear him speak in person. US officials now believe that Mojtaba’s reluctance to appear amid assassination threats could be a factor in delaying talks.

Top Trump aides said the White House believes Khamenei’s absence from active decision-making has led to rifts within the current Iranian leadership. There is no clear consensus among the leaders on their position or how much power to give negotiators in decisions to the future of Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iran is believed to still possess an estimated 440 kilograms of enriched uranium. This enriched uranium remains a major obstacle to peace talks. Trump’s team believes that the instructions Mojtaba Khamenei is giving to his subordinates at this time can only be guessed at. Amidst all this, an official said that there is still a possibility that the US and Iran will return to the negotiating table soon. However, there is still no certainty about when and how this will happen.

Ali Vaez, director of the Iran Project at the International Crisis Group, said that it appears that Mujtaba is not in a position to truly make any significant decisions or closely control the negotiations. However, he believes the current arrangement is using him to obtain final approval for major decisions, rather than for negotiating strategies. “This arrangement gives Mujtaba a protective shield, unlike his father, Ali Khamenei, who regularly appeared and delivered speeches,” Vaez said. He also said that since Mujtaba is absent from the process, imposing his views on him is a good excuse for Iranian negotiators to avoid criticism.