AHMADINEJAD DEALS WITH AFTERSHOCKS OF NUCLEAR NEGOTIATOR’S DISMISSAL

International Herald Tribune, France
The Associated Press
Oct 23 2007

TEHRAN: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran on Tuesday cut
short a planned two-day visit to Armenia, officials there said,
as the hard-line leader faced signs of unhappiness at home over the
resignation of Iran’s top nuclear negotiator.

The sudden replacement of Ali Larijani further fueled complaints – even
from conservatives who were once his supporters – that Ahmadinejad was
mismanaging Iran’s most vital issues, particularly its confrontation
with the West over the nuclear program.

Beyond the suddenness of Larijani’s departure, the choice for his
replacement, Saeed Jalili, also came as a surprise. Jalili was a
little-known deputy foreign minister, noted mainly for his loyalty
to Ahmadinejad.

In a sign the displeasure may reach high levels in Iran’s clerical
establishment, a foreign policy adviser to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,
the supreme leader, complained about the change over the weekend just
ahead of a meeting with the European Union in Rome on Tuesday.

"It was definitely better if this did not happen in the important
and sensitive situation when the nuclear issue is on the table," the
adviser, a former foreign minister, Ali Akbar Velayati, was quoted
Monday as saying by the semi-official press agency ISNA.

During Ahmadinejad’s absence Monday, complaints mounted over Larijani’s
dismissal, with 183 lawmakers, most of them conservatives, adopting a
measure praising his performance as negotiator, a sign of displeasure
with his departure.

A conservative lawmaker, Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, criticized the
change, saying "the calamity of repeated dismissals and replacements
has become a policy in this government, a move that not only has not
brought any improvements, but also has damaged progress both in the
domestic and foreign arenas."

Jalili’s elevation was a startling jump onto the powerful Supreme
National Security Council, the decision-making body that includes
top political and military officials. He met Tuesday in Rome with
the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, in his
first talks as top negotiator, although Larijani attended to help
the transition.

Before Larijani resigned, an EU official who requested anonymity said
that the Rome meeting would focus on Tehran’s refusal to heed the
United Nations Security Council’s demands for a freeze on uranium
enrichment.

Larijani’s resignation has been widely interpreted as a victory
for Ahmadinejad, enabling him to impose a tougher line in the
negotiations. Though a conservative, Larijani was considered more
moderate than Ahmadinejad and had reportedly differed with the
president over how to approach the talks.

But his ouster could hurt Ahmadinejad by further reducing the
president’s support within the political establishment. Many at home
complain that he has failed to improve the economy and unnecessarily
worsened the standoff with the West with fiery rhetoric that has
angered the United States and Europe.

The appointment of Jalili reflects Ahmadinejad’s desire to "consolidate
control over all foreign policy," said Vali Nasr, a professor of
international politics and an expert on Iran at Tufts University’s
Fletcher School. While the discontent may not damage him immediately,
"in the long run it matters because incompetence may bring down
Ahmadinejad," Nasr said.

It was not known if the interruption of Ahmadinejad’s visit to Armenia
was linked to the controversy. He may have sought to avoid angering
Turkey by dropping his visit to a genocide memorial there.

Armenian officials said Ahmadinejad had been expected Tuesday to
plant a silver fir sapling at a memorial to the millions of Armenians
slain by the Ottoman Turks at the beginning of the last century. But
he informed his hosts Monday evening that he had to go home early
Tuesday because of unexpected developments in Iran, a spokesman for
President Robert Kocharian said.

Landing in Tehran on Tuesday, Ahmadinejad insisted that his trip had
not been cut short, saying it had been scheduled to last 22 hours
and in fact went 90 minutes over.

The top nuclear negotiator has the official title of secretary of
the council, but usually he is a member of the council before being
elevated to the post. Traditionally, the secretary has also been one
of Khamenei’s personal representatives on the council. Jalili was
not on the council before being named its secretary over the weekend.

Instead, the 42-year-old Jalili served as deputy foreign minister
for European and American affairs. He acted as a quiet envoy for
the president, delivering messages to European officials. He also
wrote the first speech Ahmadinejad gave to the United Nations, in
2005, in which the president proclaimed Iran’s "inalienable right"
to nuclear energy, Nasr said.

The replacement of Larijani could not have taken place without the
consent of Khamenei, who has final say in all state issues. But that
consent may not necessarily be a sign of the supreme leader’s backing
for Ahmadinejad.

Some observers said Khamenei, who has been silent over the change,
may be giving the president more leeway on the nuclear dossier to
be in a better position to reel him in if his policies lead to a new
round of UN sanctions.