New Iranian President Hassan Rouhani: A Beacon of Liberalism or the “Golden Mean”?
64-year-old Hassan Rouhani (got 18,613 million votes, or more than 50%, with approximately 80-percentage turnout in elections) became the new president of Iran. This man is the one about which you can safely say: a professional statesman. During Iran’s war with Iraq, he held leading positions in the command of the Iranian Armed Forces, in 1989-2005. He chaired the Supreme Council of National Security and was the head of the delegation at the negotiations on the nuclear program. He also held other high positions, and was also a deputy of the Majlis for twenty years.
Brief information about his biography is given on the website. RIA News". Rouhani was born on November 12 of 1948. He graduated from Tehran University, receiving a bachelor's degree in law, and Caledonian University of Glasgow (United Kingdom), receiving a doctorate in law.
During the Iran-Iraq war, he held leading positions in the command of the armed forces of Iran. In 1989-2005 He was chairman of the Supreme National Security Council, head of the Iranian delegation at the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program.
From 1991, Rouhani is a member of the Board of Expediency, and from 1992, the head of the Center for Strategic Studies of Iran. Since 1999, a member of the board of experts.
In 1980-2000, he was a member of the Majlis, and in 1992-2000. He was the deputy chairman of the Majlis.
Rouhani explained his victory in the presidential election. “This great epic event (the election of the head of state) opens up new opportunities for us, and countries that advocate democracy and open dialogue should respect the Iranian people and recognize the rights of the Islamic Republic,” he said during the first public appearance after victory . "This is a victory of intelligence, restraint and progress over extremism," - further quotes his words Interfax.
Congratulations on the victory were pretty friendly. The world powers seem to have forgotten about their differences.
As the BBC reported, the United States is ready for talks with the Iranian authorities on the nuclear program after Rouhani’s victory.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton wished Rouhani success in forming the government and promised to cooperate with the new Iranian leadership in order to quickly resolve the Iranian nuclear issue diplomatically.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon congratulated Rouhani on his victory.
Vladimir Putin also congratulated Rouhani on his election, the Kremlin press service said.
According to the Syrian official agency SANA, Bashar Asad sent a congratulatory telegram to Hassan Rouhani on the occasion of his election as president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
On behalf of the Syrian people, the head of state congratulated the new president of Iran, who received the support of millions of voters, and wished him success in the new field.
Comrade Assad reaffirmed his country's determination to continue to develop relations of friendship and cooperation between Syria and Iran in all areas. In particular, to jointly oppose the plans of aggression, hegemony and violation of the national sovereignty of the countries of the region.
The general director of the Center for the Study of Modern Iran, Rajab Safarov, whose opinion leads Interfax, believes that Rouhani is likely to take a course towards restoring relations with the West. “I believe that in any case, Hassan Rouhani and his team will abandon the course of a hard confrontation with the West, which was held for eight years under Ahmadinejad. Bad relations with the West largely determined the extremely difficult economic situation of Iran and the sharp decline in the standard of living of the population, ”he said.
He added that "Tehran will not be able to solve economic problems without changing its foreign policy, and therefore it should be expected that Rouhani will give the Iranian nuclear program a transparent character."
The head of the Duma’s international affairs committee, Aleksei Pushkov, believes that Rouhani’s election will prevent Washington from taking power actions against Tehran. Pushkov's Twitter recording says: “The Rouhani victory in Iran makes it very difficult for the US military scenario in Rel. Iran How can you bomb a country where a reforming president is in power? ”
Igor Pankratenko, Advisor to the Director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies and Initiatives, in the article “Iran: issues after elections” ("Fund of Strategic Culture") discusses why Rawhani, who collected 50,68% of votes in elections, hastily labeled a liberal, and to what extent he will be loyal to the Supreme Leader.
The author believes that the reasons for self-deception of the liberal public are ignorance with a couple of incompetence. The Iranian understanding of what conservatism is and what liberalism is is very different from the Western one. Another nuance that comes from the specifics of the Iranian political field is also curious: a “conservative” in international affairs can be a “liberal” in internal affairs, and vice versa.
The analyst believes that the Iranian society, casting votes over Rouhani, voted for a more balanced president. During the pre-election debates, Ahmadinejad was criticized not for social reforms and not for the policy of mastering the peaceful atom. He was criticized for lack of restraint of statements that gave the West a reason for another sanctions or informational attack on Iran, the author writes.
Rowhani, the analyst believes, is a kind of compromise figure for the transition period during which the young political elite must overcome internal differences, come out in a united front.
Following the last election, White House spokesman Jay Carney noted the courage of the Iranian people: "We respect the will of the Iranian people and congratulate them on their participation in the political process ... We hope that the Iranian leadership will listen to the will of the Iranian people shown in this vote." I. Pankratenko notes that this passage is in bad agreement with the earlier statement of the head of the State Department that “the elections in Iran are neither free nor democratic”.
The words of John Kerry, spoken by him at the end of May, are quoted by Sergei Strokan (Kommersant). He notes that, trying not to give rise to discontent, the Iranian authorities tried to make the 2013 election predictable and conflict-free. They removed a number of figures from the race: out of 686 contenders for the presidency, the Council of the Guardians of the Constitution registered only eight candidates.
The head of the Department of State, who was on a visit to Israel, immediately attacked the Iranian authorities with criticism: “The Council of Guards narrowed down the list of almost seven hundred potential candidates to eight persons who represent exclusively the interests of the regime. This can hardly be called an election according to the standards that guide the majority of countries and peoples who uphold the principles of free, fair, competitive, transparent elections. ”
According to the head of American diplomacy, "the Iranian people will not be allowed not only to elect someone who could express their point of view, but also to take part in activities that are an integral part of genuine democracy."
Criticism is not only typical for the State Department, but this time preventive. When Mr. Kerry said this, there were still almost three weeks before the elections in Iran.
In addition, the principles of free elections would take care of Washington itself, where in one district of Ohio the candidate Obama received 2012 in November 108% of votes, and the system of “electors” has long been criticized. And even though 40 parties are registered in the USA, only two of them rule the state: Democratic and Republican, that is, there is a political duopoly in the country. Nomination of only two final candidates from these parties to the elections for some reason does not seem to be “undemocratic” to the State Department. All this is very well suited to the proverb about the beam in the eye.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi replied to the State Department: “The best advice to American officials is to receive information from reliable sources and from specialized advisers. At the same time, they should be aware of the possible consequences of such unjust comments. ”
Regarding the possible "liberalization" in Iran, there are different opinions. Opposites have opinions.
Channel "Euronews", for example, reports on the expectation of Tehranian transformations. Rouhani for Iranians has become a symbol of change, observers say. “Long live reforms!” The residents of Tehran are chanting. Breaking the dust and conservatives, Rouhani guaranteed freedom to the people, promised to “return ethics to politics”, raise the economy from his knees and improve relations with the rest of the world, the channel transmits.
The unnamed resident of Iran says: “The people voted! The support of the former presidents Rafsanjani and Khatami, especially in the last few days, and Aref’s self-withdrawal - all this inspired the country and allowed these elections to open the way for reformers. ”
Dmitry Zelenin (ITAR-TASS, Beirut) writes that a 64-year-old politician who has religious Khojatol eslama is popular with young people, who are waiting for modernization from him. As the observer Ali Badram notes, the Iranians are counting on the new president to initiate the policy of “infitah” - liberalization in the economic and domestic political sphere.
In the pre-election program, Rouhani promised that after his election he would develop a “Charter of Civil Liberties” and release political prisoners from prison, including “green wave” activists.
According to TV presenter Gassan bin Jeddah, the triumph of democracy in Iran and the success of Rouhani show that the Iranians were able to overcome the split in society caused by the presidential election of 2009 of the year and the repression against the leaders of the opposition. “Iran is entering a new era, having strengthened the internal front in front of serious external challenges,” sums Ben Jeddah.
As for Iran’s relations with Russia after Rouhani’s victory, RIA News" Alexander Konovalov, head of the Russian Institute of Strategic Assessments, Tehran will not need Russia as much as he needed it before as a support in the fight against the United States.
“When Washington was the main enemy of Iran, and the struggle was fought mainly with the United States, Tehran turned to Russia as a support in this struggle, willy-nilly or not,” comrade Konovalov noted. However, in his opinion, “if it (the struggle) is replaced by some form of cooperation that is reasonable enough, then for Iran, the need for reliance on Russia as a force that can be opposed in the conflict with the United States will not be so important.”
Rouhani, Konovalov added, reflects the interests of those who can be grouped under the slogan “We want change”: young people, students, women, gender movements, intellectuals. “There will be changes, but not quite the ones that we would like, because they will primarily concern the improvement of relations with the West, the withdrawal of Iran from the difficult economic situation in which it is located, despite the enormous hydrocarbon wealth. Iran needs to leave sanctions, ”the expert believes.
But Rajab Safarov believes that the development and deepening of relations with Moscow will most likely become one of the priorities of the new Iranian president’s foreign policy. “Rouhani is a pragmatist, and therefore relations with Russia will at least not deteriorate. And most likely, we should expect the manifestation of interest from Iran to intensify these relations. The approach here is pragmatic: Russia is important for Iran as a serious player in solving the problems of the Caspian Sea, as well as for entering the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as quickly as possible. I personally spoke with Rouhani. He treats Russia well, ”quotes the expert. Interfax.
In conclusion, it should be noted that the noticeable surprise of the West about the results of elections in Iran (which had to be recognized urgently, despite the preliminary hot statements by John Kerry) speaks of the useless work of current American analysts who had missed both the evaluation of the elections and the prediction of who will be the favorite race. It will not be easy for Mr. Kerry, as well as his patron Obama, to build relations with the person who, it turns out, was elected undemocratic and represented “exclusively the interests of the regime”! If the State Department did not like the tone in which Comrade Ahmadinejad spoke to the West, then this same West has always forgotten the tone that it allows and allows in relation to its political opponents.
Apparently, Washington will have to learn endurance and the ability to conduct a dialogue with Hassan Rouhani. However, both Kerry and Obama are hopeless in this sense. Figures like Samantha Power and Susan Rice, who have rallied around them recently and who have long been famous for their aggressive mentoring rhetoric, speak volumes.
Brief information about his biography is given on the website. RIA News". Rouhani was born on November 12 of 1948. He graduated from Tehran University, receiving a bachelor's degree in law, and Caledonian University of Glasgow (United Kingdom), receiving a doctorate in law.
During the Iran-Iraq war, he held leading positions in the command of the armed forces of Iran. In 1989-2005 He was chairman of the Supreme National Security Council, head of the Iranian delegation at the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program.
From 1991, Rouhani is a member of the Board of Expediency, and from 1992, the head of the Center for Strategic Studies of Iran. Since 1999, a member of the board of experts.
In 1980-2000, he was a member of the Majlis, and in 1992-2000. He was the deputy chairman of the Majlis.
Rouhani explained his victory in the presidential election. “This great epic event (the election of the head of state) opens up new opportunities for us, and countries that advocate democracy and open dialogue should respect the Iranian people and recognize the rights of the Islamic Republic,” he said during the first public appearance after victory . "This is a victory of intelligence, restraint and progress over extremism," - further quotes his words Interfax.
Congratulations on the victory were pretty friendly. The world powers seem to have forgotten about their differences.
As the BBC reported, the United States is ready for talks with the Iranian authorities on the nuclear program after Rouhani’s victory.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton wished Rouhani success in forming the government and promised to cooperate with the new Iranian leadership in order to quickly resolve the Iranian nuclear issue diplomatically.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon congratulated Rouhani on his victory.
Vladimir Putin also congratulated Rouhani on his election, the Kremlin press service said.
According to the Syrian official agency SANA, Bashar Asad sent a congratulatory telegram to Hassan Rouhani on the occasion of his election as president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
On behalf of the Syrian people, the head of state congratulated the new president of Iran, who received the support of millions of voters, and wished him success in the new field.
Comrade Assad reaffirmed his country's determination to continue to develop relations of friendship and cooperation between Syria and Iran in all areas. In particular, to jointly oppose the plans of aggression, hegemony and violation of the national sovereignty of the countries of the region.
The general director of the Center for the Study of Modern Iran, Rajab Safarov, whose opinion leads Interfax, believes that Rouhani is likely to take a course towards restoring relations with the West. “I believe that in any case, Hassan Rouhani and his team will abandon the course of a hard confrontation with the West, which was held for eight years under Ahmadinejad. Bad relations with the West largely determined the extremely difficult economic situation of Iran and the sharp decline in the standard of living of the population, ”he said.
He added that "Tehran will not be able to solve economic problems without changing its foreign policy, and therefore it should be expected that Rouhani will give the Iranian nuclear program a transparent character."
The head of the Duma’s international affairs committee, Aleksei Pushkov, believes that Rouhani’s election will prevent Washington from taking power actions against Tehran. Pushkov's Twitter recording says: “The Rouhani victory in Iran makes it very difficult for the US military scenario in Rel. Iran How can you bomb a country where a reforming president is in power? ”
Igor Pankratenko, Advisor to the Director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies and Initiatives, in the article “Iran: issues after elections” ("Fund of Strategic Culture") discusses why Rawhani, who collected 50,68% of votes in elections, hastily labeled a liberal, and to what extent he will be loyal to the Supreme Leader.
“If you look at the headlines of non-Iranian media after 14 June, then there is a certain jubilation of the“ wide liberal public ”, who for some reason decided that the seventh president of Iran is among the“ spiritually close ones ”. Reading the predictions, it seems that tomorrow or the day after tomorrow the Iranians will go to the “bright future of the consumer society” in orderly columns and ribbons. Oh well…"
The author believes that the reasons for self-deception of the liberal public are ignorance with a couple of incompetence. The Iranian understanding of what conservatism is and what liberalism is is very different from the Western one. Another nuance that comes from the specifics of the Iranian political field is also curious: a “conservative” in international affairs can be a “liberal” in internal affairs, and vice versa.
The analyst believes that the Iranian society, casting votes over Rouhani, voted for a more balanced president. During the pre-election debates, Ahmadinejad was criticized not for social reforms and not for the policy of mastering the peaceful atom. He was criticized for lack of restraint of statements that gave the West a reason for another sanctions or informational attack on Iran, the author writes.
“The Iranian society, saturated with the traditions of“ soft power ”, prudence, respect for the balance of interests of the elites, simply could not“ digest ”the aggressiveness and aggressive dynamics of Ahmadinejad at this stage ...”
Rowhani, the analyst believes, is a kind of compromise figure for the transition period during which the young political elite must overcome internal differences, come out in a united front.
Following the last election, White House spokesman Jay Carney noted the courage of the Iranian people: "We respect the will of the Iranian people and congratulate them on their participation in the political process ... We hope that the Iranian leadership will listen to the will of the Iranian people shown in this vote." I. Pankratenko notes that this passage is in bad agreement with the earlier statement of the head of the State Department that “the elections in Iran are neither free nor democratic”.
The words of John Kerry, spoken by him at the end of May, are quoted by Sergei Strokan (Kommersant). He notes that, trying not to give rise to discontent, the Iranian authorities tried to make the 2013 election predictable and conflict-free. They removed a number of figures from the race: out of 686 contenders for the presidency, the Council of the Guardians of the Constitution registered only eight candidates.
The head of the Department of State, who was on a visit to Israel, immediately attacked the Iranian authorities with criticism: “The Council of Guards narrowed down the list of almost seven hundred potential candidates to eight persons who represent exclusively the interests of the regime. This can hardly be called an election according to the standards that guide the majority of countries and peoples who uphold the principles of free, fair, competitive, transparent elections. ”
According to the head of American diplomacy, "the Iranian people will not be allowed not only to elect someone who could express their point of view, but also to take part in activities that are an integral part of genuine democracy."
Criticism is not only typical for the State Department, but this time preventive. When Mr. Kerry said this, there were still almost three weeks before the elections in Iran.
In addition, the principles of free elections would take care of Washington itself, where in one district of Ohio the candidate Obama received 2012 in November 108% of votes, and the system of “electors” has long been criticized. And even though 40 parties are registered in the USA, only two of them rule the state: Democratic and Republican, that is, there is a political duopoly in the country. Nomination of only two final candidates from these parties to the elections for some reason does not seem to be “undemocratic” to the State Department. All this is very well suited to the proverb about the beam in the eye.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi replied to the State Department: “The best advice to American officials is to receive information from reliable sources and from specialized advisers. At the same time, they should be aware of the possible consequences of such unjust comments. ”
Regarding the possible "liberalization" in Iran, there are different opinions. Opposites have opinions.
Channel "Euronews", for example, reports on the expectation of Tehranian transformations. Rouhani for Iranians has become a symbol of change, observers say. “Long live reforms!” The residents of Tehran are chanting. Breaking the dust and conservatives, Rouhani guaranteed freedom to the people, promised to “return ethics to politics”, raise the economy from his knees and improve relations with the rest of the world, the channel transmits.
The unnamed resident of Iran says: “The people voted! The support of the former presidents Rafsanjani and Khatami, especially in the last few days, and Aref’s self-withdrawal - all this inspired the country and allowed these elections to open the way for reformers. ”
Dmitry Zelenin (ITAR-TASS, Beirut) writes that a 64-year-old politician who has religious Khojatol eslama is popular with young people, who are waiting for modernization from him. As the observer Ali Badram notes, the Iranians are counting on the new president to initiate the policy of “infitah” - liberalization in the economic and domestic political sphere.
In the pre-election program, Rouhani promised that after his election he would develop a “Charter of Civil Liberties” and release political prisoners from prison, including “green wave” activists.
According to TV presenter Gassan bin Jeddah, the triumph of democracy in Iran and the success of Rouhani show that the Iranians were able to overcome the split in society caused by the presidential election of 2009 of the year and the repression against the leaders of the opposition. “Iran is entering a new era, having strengthened the internal front in front of serious external challenges,” sums Ben Jeddah.
As for Iran’s relations with Russia after Rouhani’s victory, RIA News" Alexander Konovalov, head of the Russian Institute of Strategic Assessments, Tehran will not need Russia as much as he needed it before as a support in the fight against the United States.
“When Washington was the main enemy of Iran, and the struggle was fought mainly with the United States, Tehran turned to Russia as a support in this struggle, willy-nilly or not,” comrade Konovalov noted. However, in his opinion, “if it (the struggle) is replaced by some form of cooperation that is reasonable enough, then for Iran, the need for reliance on Russia as a force that can be opposed in the conflict with the United States will not be so important.”
Rouhani, Konovalov added, reflects the interests of those who can be grouped under the slogan “We want change”: young people, students, women, gender movements, intellectuals. “There will be changes, but not quite the ones that we would like, because they will primarily concern the improvement of relations with the West, the withdrawal of Iran from the difficult economic situation in which it is located, despite the enormous hydrocarbon wealth. Iran needs to leave sanctions, ”the expert believes.
But Rajab Safarov believes that the development and deepening of relations with Moscow will most likely become one of the priorities of the new Iranian president’s foreign policy. “Rouhani is a pragmatist, and therefore relations with Russia will at least not deteriorate. And most likely, we should expect the manifestation of interest from Iran to intensify these relations. The approach here is pragmatic: Russia is important for Iran as a serious player in solving the problems of the Caspian Sea, as well as for entering the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as quickly as possible. I personally spoke with Rouhani. He treats Russia well, ”quotes the expert. Interfax.
In conclusion, it should be noted that the noticeable surprise of the West about the results of elections in Iran (which had to be recognized urgently, despite the preliminary hot statements by John Kerry) speaks of the useless work of current American analysts who had missed both the evaluation of the elections and the prediction of who will be the favorite race. It will not be easy for Mr. Kerry, as well as his patron Obama, to build relations with the person who, it turns out, was elected undemocratic and represented “exclusively the interests of the regime”! If the State Department did not like the tone in which Comrade Ahmadinejad spoke to the West, then this same West has always forgotten the tone that it allows and allows in relation to its political opponents.
Apparently, Washington will have to learn endurance and the ability to conduct a dialogue with Hassan Rouhani. However, both Kerry and Obama are hopeless in this sense. Figures like Samantha Power and Susan Rice, who have rallied around them recently and who have long been famous for their aggressive mentoring rhetoric, speak volumes.
Observed and commented on Oleg Chuvakin
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