The story: In a rare political message, Iran's former chief diplomat Mohammad Javad Zarif (2013-21) has defended making compromises in foreign policy. While Zarif's supporters have welcomed his intervention, conservatives have lashed out at the veteran diplomat and questioned his credentials. This comes amid increasing reports of behind-the-scenes efforts to prevent the Iran-US confrontation over the Iranian nuclear program from spiralling out of control.

The coverage: Zarif opened his June 3 message posted to Instagram with a reference to a controversial comment he made in a previous televised interview.

• In the Aug. 2018 interview, Zarif was asked why there was so much international pressure on Iran, to which he responded that "we chose it ourselves."
  
  
• In his Instagram note, the former chief diplomat said Iranians throughout history had set their goals "based on our ambitions" with...