Elon Musk, soon to be co-chair of Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, met secretly with Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani. The meeting was convened at Musk's request and lasted more than an hour.
Two Iranian sources told the New York Times that the discussions with Musk centered on how to defuse tensions between the two countries.
Trump communications director Steven Cheung declined to comment on the possible meeting while Karoline Leavitt, the transition spokeswoman for the administration, said in a statement, “The American people re-elected President Trump because they trust him to lead our country and restore peace through strength around the world. When he returns to the White House, he will take the necessary action to do just that.”
Because the Trump transition team and close aides didn't deny that the meeting was authorized, we have to assume that Musk was acting on Trump's orders. This is not unusual for an incoming administration to reach out to enemies, which is why, for Trump, it's unusual.
Trump (rightfully) tore up the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, placed heavy sanctions on Iran's oil and financial industries, and ordered the killing of the number one Iranian killer of Americans, top Revolutionary Guards General Qassim Suleimani, leader of the Quds Force. For that last act, the Iranians have been trying to kill Trump for three years. He has never shown much consideration for Iran, so this overture is out of the ordinary for the president-elect.
But in the wake of Mr. Trump’s election last week, Iran has been openly debating whether it can now reach a new and more lasting deal with the United States. Many members of President Masoud Pezeshkian’s new government favor negotiating, arguing that Mr. Trump likes to make deals and that there may be an opportunity to get the sanctions lifted.
Many in the conservative faction in Iran oppose engagement with Mr. Trump, and any negotiations — or deal — must be approved by the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Mr. Trump has been an avid supporter of Israel, which has been waging war on the Iranian-backed militias Hamas and Hezbollah since the Oct. 7 attack last year.
What about the hit on Trump? The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Iran has offered "written assurances" to the Biden administration last month that they would not have Trump killed.
The Iranian assurances came in response to a specific warning delivered by the Biden administration to Iran in September. It reflected the administration's public message that it considered the threats to Trump to be a "top-tier" national security issue.
U.S. officials say their September message to Iran echoed repeated previous warnings against harming Trump but was sent in light of the new information.
The Iranian reply, which wasn’t signed by a specific official, repeated Tehran’s accusation that Trump had committed a crime by ordering the killing of Soleimani, the officials said.
U.S. officials say they are confident Washington’s message reached Iran’s leadership. They didn’t say whether the messages were sent via Switzerland, which represents U.S. interests in Iran.
Iran can "assure" the U.S. all it wants, but the simple fact is that we don't know which faction is promising not to kill Trump. We know that as recently as September, the Revolutionary Guards under the direct orders of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had begun implementing a plot to kill Trump. Simply put, Trump can't afford to accept anything the Iranian government says about his safety at face value.
“Iran can’t seriously float trial balloons for engagement while plotting to eliminate its would-be negotiating partners. It’s like reaching out with one hand to make a deal while holding a blade in the other,” said Ali Vaez, senior adviser in Washington at Crisis Group, a conflict resolution organization.
But Vaez says that anything is possible with Trump.
“Overall, everything is possible with Trump,” said Vaez. “He appears to be interested in a deal with Iran.” But some advisers, he said, may favor other approaches, among them increasing the pressure on Iran.
The Musk meeting with the Iranian UN ambassador may have been an effort to start building trust. They have a long way to go on that score.
