Iranian President Tries to Bribe Revolutionary Guard Corps to Back Nuclear Deal

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is seeking to bribe the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to cease its efforts to undermine the nuclear deal with global powers, reports Ali Alfonen – a senior fellow with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. 

In a September 15 address to the IRGC’s senior leadership, Rouhani bragged about the “revolutionary deed” of “breaking the unjust sanctions regime,” and called for the IRGC and other military and security apparatuses to “help the government and the people in production, development and economic growth.”

According to Alfonen – an expert on the IRGC – Rouhani’s message suggests that if the IRGC supports the agreement, a significant amount of money released to Iran as part of the economic sanctions relief will reach the IRGC’s extensive business dealings.

Alfonen argues that the IRGC will likely accept the bribe while continuing its staunch opposition to the nuclear agreement. For Rouhani to deliver such an address, the IRGC leadership would have been consulted beforehand, indicating that the hard-line faction accepted the bribe.

But the IRGC’s continued opposition, as Alfonen’s headline indicates, could “could torpedo” the nuclear deal.

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