Rouhani win shifts focus to Saudi ties
Leader pledges global cooperation
IRAN’S fraught relationship with Saudi Arabia has come under the international spotlight following the re-election of Iran’s incumbent moderate President Hassan Rouhani at the same time as US President Donald Trump is in Riyadh pledging his support for the kingdom’s leaders.
Rouhani was re-elected to a second term by a landslide, the interior minister declared on Saturday, presenting him with a resounding endorsement of his plans to end Iran’s pariah status and rejoin the global economy.
With 57% of the vote, Rouhani defeated his hardline rival Ebrahim Raisi, who had the backing of the ruling clergy and allied security forces.
He also won a clear mandate to push through domestic reforms and pursue talks with the West, building on the nuclear deal he negotiated with world powers.
Although Trump opposes that deal, he may find it harder to end it following the election of Rouhani, who will continue to foster interaction with the rest of the world and try to mend ties with Saudi Arabia, according to Iranian analysts.
In addition, although US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has called on Rouhani to “begin a process of dismantling Iran’s network of terrorism” during his second term, Tehran has indicated that the US should rather be seeking co-operation from Trump’s hosts in Riyadh to prevent a repeat of September 11.
Iran’s foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif yesterday advised Trump to “enter into dialogue with (Riyadh) about ways to prevent terrorists… from continuing to fuel the fire in the region and repeating the likes of the September 11 incident by their sponsors in Western countries”.
Tehran and Riyadh are regional rivals that accuse each other of sponsoring militias aligned to their competing sects of Islam in war zones across the Middle East. Critics of Saudi Arabia say its strict view of Islam fuels Sunni extremism.
Saudi Arabia denies any support for the September 11 hijackers, most of whom were Saudi citizens, who killed nearly 3 000 people in 2001. At a campaign event last February, Trump himself suggested to supporters that the kingdom may be behind the attacks.
But since his election, Trump has put an end to his sharp public commentary about the key US ally and the world’s top oil exporter.
Sadegh Zibakalam, professor of political science at Tehran University, said Rouhani’s next administration will seek normalisation of ties with Saudi Arabia and negotiations over the regional conflicts.
Iran and Saudi Arabia are at loggerheads over their expansion of influence in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain. The Iranian Foreign Ministry announced last week that the Islamic republic does not seek any “tension” with Saudi Arabia.
On Saturday, Rouhani said Iran will continue interaction with the international community and is ready to expand co-operation with other countries. Rouhani believes in détente with the West, including the US and he has to some extent achieved this, Zibakalam said.
Rouhani and his cabinet clinched the nuclear deal during his first term, constraining Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for international sanctions relief. Since Rouhani does not seek friction with the US, there is no risk for the deal’s obstruction, said Zibakalam.
“At the moment, we know that Trump wants to get rid of it, but he cannot,” because Rouhani’s administration has not violated it.
During his presidential campaign, Trump criticised the pact as “the worst deal ever negotiated”. Iran and six world powers – Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US – agreed the deal in July 2015.
“If the US wants to derail the deal, other parties of the deal will not follow it,” said Zibakalam.
Another Iranian political expert Hassan Beheshti Pour said if Rouhani had not been re-elected, it would have been a major cause for concern since other countries would have had to readjust their policies towards Iran.