IRGC General Appointed Secretary of Iran’s National Security Council

Iran's president Ebrahim Raisi decided to appoint Ali Akbar Ahmadian as head of the National Security Council, to succeed Ali Shamkhani, Tasnim news agency. according to

Ahmadian, 62, is the director of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’ Strategic Center and a member of the Expediency Council (IRGC)

He used to serve as the IRGC Navy commander from August 1997 until July 2000. He was also the chief of Staff of the IRGC for seven years.

Ali Shamkhani was appointed as a member of the Strategic Council for Foreign Relations in 2013 by decision of Khamenei

Shamkhani was a key player in negotiations with the West over Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. He was also in office during the years of tensions that followed then-President Donald Trump’s 2018 decision to unilaterally withdraw America from the accord

The decree, reported by the state-run IRNA news agency, offered no explanation for the change. In a message on Twitter on Sunday night, as rumors about his position circulated, Shamkhani cryptically posted a verse by the 14th century Persian poet Mohtasham Kashani.