Iran’s former head of IAEO: Spiritual ownership of the Lion and Sun symbol belongs to Iran

8 February 2026, 16:20

Avash News

The former head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization (IAEO) has said that the philosophy of the Lion and Sun symbol belongs to Imam Ali (AS), the first Shia Imam, and that its spiritual ownership belongs to Iran.

Avash News: Ali Akbar Salehi, who was speaking at the specialized panel of the first National Congress of Foreign Policy, said that over the past 47 years, foreign relations have remained undecided, which can be seen in their implications for domestic issues.

Salehi said that the biggest challenge of Iran’s governance is to decide on its foreign relations.

Salehi said that “one of the features of a revolution is that it can be reformed.” He said that in the 21st century many issues can be important, but we must select some topics and move forward based on those topics.

“The right foundation of our system in the current century must be drawing our attention to climate change, water issues, AI, and socio-economic issues,” he said.
Salehi said that thought and ideas do not need to be exported.

“Our Islamic Revolution had a foundation of knowledge, which, if it is defined well, can be appealing,” he said.

Salehi, who is now the head of the Iranology Foundation, said that Iranology has studied the roots of the Lion and Sun symbol and has found that the symbol is rooted in Iranian-Islamic identity and that its intellectual property belongs to Iran.
He said that some countries tried to use the symbol, but Iran did not allow them, as the holder of its intellectual property.

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