Hardline Iranian newspaper Kayhan has compared former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, who served from 1937 to 1940, criticising calls for renewed negotiations with the United States.

The current reformist Pezeshkian administration, following the 12-day war with Israel, said it was open to negotiations with the US with preconditions, but no formal dates had been set for a meeting with Donald Trump’s special representative, Steve Wiktoff. Both sides remain at an impasse: the US and its allies demand Iran halt enrichment and return to full IAEA oversight, while Iran demands security guarantees and recognition of its enrichment rights and has voted to leave the UN monitoring group following attacks on Fordow.

The newspaper criticised reformist publication Arman-e Melli for suggesting that Hassan Rouhani and Mohammad Javad Zarif serve as special representatives for meetings with Donald Trump or Western officials. This proposal comes after Israeli attacks on Iran occurred just before new rounds of negotiations, effectively turning the diplomatic process into a 12-day war.

"A diplomatic delegation well-versed in international negotiations should enter talks," the journal recommended, specifically proposing the inclusion of Rouhani and Zarif, even through special government authorisation, given their extensive experience in nuclear negotiations with the United States and deep understanding of the diplomatic landscape.

Kayhan argued that the performance of Rouhani and Zarif in the JCPOA nuclear agreement remains one of the most questionable and challenging diplomatic experiences of the Islamic Republic. The newspaper claimed the agreement not only failed to deliver promised economic benefits but also became a factor for increased political and economic pressure on Iran following Trump's withdrawal.

Kayhan wrote: "Mohammad Javad Zarif, despite all the historical and cultural differences of today, can be the Iranian version of that figure who signed an agreement with trust and ultimately saw nothing but defeat and pressure on his nation."

The newspaper described Zarif as "the most similar personality to Neville Chamberlain, British Prime Minister from 1937 to 1940. A person who, with optimism and retreat regarding Adolf Hitler's demands, signed an agreement with Nazi Germany and held it up among the people and took pride in it; ultimately that same agreement gave exactly the opposite result for the British people and was destroyed by Hitler's excessive demands."

The newspaper referenced Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's 2021 statement: "In this government, it became clear that trusting the West does not work... wherever you made things dependent on the West, you were unsuccessful."

Kayhan asked: "Now with all these experiences we have gained, should we close our eyes to America's repeated violations and again introduce the same figures who made Iran's foreign policy dependent on empty promises as Robin Hood and saviours of the Iranian nation?"

Arman-e Melli had argued that negotiation represents the only available path to avoid continued Western attacks, calling for pragmatic management whilst suggesting hardliners should avoid inflammatory rhetoric during sensitive diplomatic periods.

"We must avoid entering into a conflict with emotional and irrational actions. If this war escalates, it threatens to engulf the entire Middle East … Our immediate focus must be on achieving peace," the newspaper concluded.