LATEST: Breakthrough for Imports of Food and Medicine?
After Iran’s new President, Hassan Rouhani promised at his Sunday inauguration that his new Government of “Hope and Prudence” would be characterized by “moderation at the basis of its management”, Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani — has signalled support for Rouhani’s proposed Cabinet.
Larijani pledged that Parliament would “have all-out amicable cooperation with the new administration” and called on the three branches of government to remain vigilant in order to fulfill “national resistance”.
If he is to succeed in his political and economic program to “meet the demands of the people”, as he declared this weekend, Rouhani will need the backing of both Ali Larijani and his brother, judiciary chief Sadegh Larijani.
The new President is all too aware of the consequences for his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, when he made enemies of the Larijanis. Under his leadership, Parliament was hostile to Ahmadinejad for most of his second term, blocking his key economic proposals, delaying his Government budgets, and threatening to impeach his Minister. In February, for example, Parliament dismissed Minister of Labor Abdolreza Sheikholeslami, sparking Ahmadinejad’s public accusation of the Larijani family of corruption.
Rouhani has taken great care to gain Ali Larijani’s support, laying the groundwork by making a heavily-publicized visit to the Speaker, just one day after his election victory in June, to discuss “cooperation between the [new] administration and the Parliament”.
Latest Updates, From Top to Bottom
Breakthrough for Imports of Food and Medicine?
A Chamber of Commerce official has said that last month’s dispute over support of imports, in which tons of vital goods were held up entering Iran, has been partially resolved.
Majid-Reza Hariri, the head of the Chamber’s Import Committee, said that delivery of essential goods — classed as Grade 1 and 2 — from Customs has begun.
The imports were blocked last month when the Central Bank suspended supply of foreign exchange at “official” rates to importers. To get the goods, the importers had to pay the open-market rate, raising their cost by 50%.
Earlier this week, the Deputy Director of Iran’s Customs Administration, Mohammad Reza Naderi, said that 58 tons of medicines had been released by Customs.
Last week, leading businessman Asadollah Asgarouladi warned that if foreign exchange was not provided at official rate, there would be “shortages in products including food”.
Asgarouladi said that about 10,000 containers with medicine and food were being held in ports in southern Iran and about 5,000 containers in Jebel-Ali port in Dubai, waiting for financial arrangement to be resolved
“Why does the current administration disregard the situation people are facing? We shall be facing food shortages in the coming months. It looks as if the eleventh administration will have to be dealing with this issue and resolving it,” Asgarouladi asserted.
There is no word on whether the Bank has resumed assistance to importers of goods in Grades 3 to 10.
Who Started the False “Israel Must Be Removed” Quote from President Rouhani?
On Friday we featured the political fight whipped up over a false quote from President Rouhani during a Quds (Jerusalem) Day march that Israel is an “old wound in the region which needs to be removed”.
In fact, Rouhani said only that the creation of Israel in 1948 was “an old wound that has been sitting on the body of the Islamic world”.
So who was responsible for the distortion and exaggeration? An Iranian source, featured by journalist Arash Karami, explains that the culprit is State news agency IRNA, which has been allied with the Ahmadinejad Government:
When Hassan Rouhani, who was walking at the rally, came face-to-face with the reporters, Rouhani’s [security] team only allowed a reporter from the Islamic Republic News Agency to interview Rouhani, along with state television and radio. After that, the reporter from IRNA shared the text with the other reporters” who were not allowed to approach Rouhani.
These reporters, trusting what was told to them, published the incorrect text of Rouhani’s statements on Israel, not knowing that parts of these statements were incorrect and distorted.
Ex-President Ahmadinejad Gets A New Job
Nasim Online reports that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, replaced as President on Saturday, has found a new job — the Supreme Leader has appointed him to the Expediency Council, which reviews relations between the three branches of Government.
The new post could lead to some interesting discussions: the chairman of the Expediency Council is Ahmaidnejad’s rival, former President Hashemi Rafsanjani.
