Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has appointed Mohammad Javad Zarif, the chief negotiator of the 2015 nuclear deal with major powers, as vice president for strategic affairs, state media reported on Thursday.

"You are tasked with overseeing major national and international developments as well as how far we succeed in achieving the goals of the constitution," Pezeshkian stated in the letter of appointment, according to the official IRNA news agency.

Zarif, who served as foreign minister from 2013 to 2021 under President Hassan Rouhani, became a prominent figure on the international stage during the lengthy negotiations for the 2015 agreement.

The deal was significantly undermined three years later when then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the agreement and reimposed severe sanctions against Iran.

A couple of hours after Pezeshkian was sworn in as president and outlined his administration's priorities, "Israel" assassinated the head of Hamas' political bureau Ismail Haniyeh in the Iranian capital Tehran.

Now, Pezeshkian's government faces a difficult challenge represented by a decisive response to the Israeli aggression that targeted a high-ranking Palestinian guest on Iranian soil.

Even before Haniyeh's assassination, the Iranian president assured that supporting the Axis of Resistance is "a legitimate duty and one of Iran's basic policies."

Acting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani already affirmed during discussions with foreign officials from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkiye that his country will respond to the Israeli escalation.

"As the world is silently watching Israel's genocide and repeated acts of international terrorism and aggression, Netanyahu is pushing the region and the world to the brink of catastrophe precisely as President Pezeshkian—on his inauguration of all days—urged the people of Iran, the region and the world to seek peace, tranquility and empathy," Zarif wrote on his account on X following Haniyeh's assassination.

As the world is silently watching Israel's genocide and repeated acts of international terrorism and aggression, Netanyahu is pushing the region and the world to the brink of catastrophe precisely as President Pezeshkian—on his inauguration of all days—urged the people of Iran,…

— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) July 31, 2024

He pointed out that "the US and EU must have realized by now that Netanyahu's survival is contingent upon death and destruction."

"High time for the West to stop shielding Netanyahu's madness and join the world in ending his suicidal chaos," the newly-appointed Iranian vice president added.

Zarif said that Haniyeh was "a tireless champion of the Palestinian people's liberation from Israeli occupation," underlining that "the cowardly assassination of our guest will only strengthen our resolve to defend our territory and support the Palestinian people's fight for their freedom."

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