‘Iran’s priority is to protect nuclear deal from US’
Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, yesterday said the top priority for his government’s foreign policy was to protect the nuclear deal from being torn up by the US.
“The most important job of our foreign minister is first to stand behind the joint accord, and not to allow the US and other enemies to succeed,” Mr Rouhani told parliament.
“Standing up for the accord means standing up to Iran’s enemies.”
Mr Rouhani said a week ago that Iran was ready to walk out on the 2015 deal, which eased sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran’s nuclear programme, if the US continued to apply new bans.
US president Donald Trump repeatedly threatened to tear up the deal during his campaign, and it has come under mounting pressure after Tehran carried out missile tests and Washington imposed new sanctions – with each accusing the other of breaching the spirit of the agreement.
But Mr Rouhani insisted the deal remained Iran’s preferred way forward, not least to help rebuild the country’s struggling economy and create jobs.
“The second responsibility of the foreign ministry is to get involved in economic activities. It should help attract foreign investment and technology,” Mr Rouhani said.
Iran needed US$200 billion (Dh734.5bn) in investments for the oil and gas sector alone, he said.
The Iranian parliament approved 16 of Mr Rouhani’s 17 cabinet picks, rejecting his suggested minister of energy, Habibollah Bitaraf, a reformist.
Foreign minister Mohammed Javad Zarif, who was the charismatic face of Iran’s nuclear negotiations, retained his position, as did oil minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, who recently struck a billion-dollar deal with French company Total.
Mr Rouhani, a political moderate, worked hard behind the scenes to secure support for his choices, including from the supreme leader and the military.
He began his second term this month after beating a hardline challenger in May, vowing to continue his outreach to the world and improve civil liberties at home.
But he has angered reformists by again failing to appoint a woman minister, and looks no closer to securing the release of jailed opposition leaders – one of whom, Mehdi Karroubi, briefly went on hunger strike last week to demand a trial after six years under house arrest.
Mr Rouhani has yet to appoint a minister of science and technology, which conservatives consider a sensitive post.