In mid-May, U.S. negotiators trying to reach a deal with Iran to end the war ran into a problem: They couldn't tell if the people across the table actually spoke for the country's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). - So Trump administration officials did something unconventional — they went around Iran's negotiators and reached out directly to IRGC leadership. The person they tapped for the backchannel was Nechirvan Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan region in Iraq, who had something very few others do: the trust of both U.S. and IRGC leaders. Why it matters: The episode, which was detailed by three sources with direct knowledge and has not been previously reported, shows how tricky it's been for the U.S. to…
How did the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei affect the power structure in Iran?
The assassination of Ali Khamenei and other senior political leaders, followed by 40 days of fighting, significantly strengthened the IRGC's control over national security and foreign policy decision-making.
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Why did a proposed secret meeting in Erbil between senior U.S. and Iranian negotiators fail to materialize?
While the Iranians did not rule out the meeting, they expressed security concerns that Israeli intelligence assets in Iraqi Kurdistan might attempt to assassinate them in Erbil or during their travel.
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What occurred on May 14 to facilitate a secure conversation between Barzani and Gen. Ahmad Vahidi?
An IRGC official arrived at Barzani's office in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, carrying an encrypted phone to conduct a secure call.
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Who was the commander of the IRGC that Nechirvan Barzani contacted on behalf of the U.S. administration?
General Ahmad Vahidi was the commander of the IRGC contacted through the backchannel.
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Why did the Trump administration seek a backchannel to the IRGC leadership in May 2026?
U.S. negotiators were uncertain if the official Iranian negotiators—Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi—actually spoke for the IRGC or were being overruled by them.
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Who was the mediator used by the Trump administration to establish a backchannel to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) leadership?
Nechirvan Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan region in Iraq, was used as the mediator because he holds the trust of both the U.S. and IRGC leaders.
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In mid-May, U.S. negotiators trying to reach a deal with Iran to end the war ran into a problem: They couldn't tell if the people across the table actually spoke for the country's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). - So Trump administration officials did something unconventional — they went around Iran's negotiators and reached out directly to IRGC leadership. The person they tapped for the backchannel was Nechirvan Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan region in Iraq, who had something very few others do: the trust of both U.S. and IRGC leaders. Why it matters: The episode, which was detailed by three sources with direct knowledge and has not been previously reported, shows how tricky it's been for the U.S. to…Open