A new Axios report adds that Nechirvan Barzani, president of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, contacted IRGC commander Ahmad Vahidi in an encrypted call and secured confirmation that Vahidi supports the Iranian negotiating team, according to the report. The US subsequently proposed direct secret talks in Erbil, but Iranian officials feared Israel would assassinate them on Kurdish soil, scuttling the plan.
The Axios report, originally published this afternoon and now supplemented with additional details, reveals that the Trump administration's indirect contact with the IRGC was more extensive than initially reported. According to the new information, Barzani — who served as intermediary — conducted an encrypted conversation with IRGC commander Ahmad Vahidi, during which Vahidi confirmed his support for the Iranian negotiating team. The White House had grown concerned that Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi lacked authority to make decisions without IRGC approval. Tulsi Gabbard, then-director of national intelligence, approached Barzani with Trump and Vice President Vance's approval.
The US subsequently proposed holding direct secret talks in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdistan Region. However, senior Iranian officials reportedly balked at the venue, fearing that Israel would assassinate them on Kurdish soil. The disclosure underscores the complex dynamics of US-Iran negotiations, with the IRGC maintaining operational veto power over the diplomatic track. As The Zioneer reported earlier today (13:10 Jerusalem), the initial Axios report described Barzani's role in establishing the backchannel. These latest details flesh out the degree of IRGC involvement and the specific security concerns that scuttled direct talks.
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