Commenting on Ebrahim Raisi’s election as Iran’s president, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan asserted that “our paramount priority right now is to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. We believe that diplomacy is the best way to achieve that, rather than military conflict… Whether the president is person A or person B is less relevant than whether their entire system is prepared to make verifiable commitments to constrain their nuclear program”. “The ultimate decision for whether or not to go back into the deal lies with Iran’s supreme leader”, he added. “It lies with him and his decision as to whether he wants to go down the path of diplomacy here or face mounting pressure not just from the U.S., but the rest of the international community”. On the JCPOA talks in Vienna, Sullivan indicated that “there is still a fair distance to travel on some of the key issues… But the arrow has been pointed in the right direction”. He further underscored that “the U.S. retains the right even under the JCPOA… to impose sanctions for reasons other than the nuclear file”.