Ahmadinejad Appoints Special Representatives to World Regions

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today appointed special representatives for five regions of the world. The appointments were made amid serious concerns by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the move would undermine Iran’s foreign policy. The Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei last week had also warned against any “duplication” of responsibility for Iran’s foreign policy. But Ahmadinejad went ahead with his plans anyway and made the appointments official today.

Among the five appointments, one is particularly controversial: Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie as the special representative for the Middle East. Mashaie has emerged as Ahmadinejad’s principle deputy and has created uproars among the clergy and traditional elements within the Islamic Republic by advocating the country’s “Iranian identity” as opposed to its “Islamic identity.” Mashaie is also serving as Ahmadinejad’s chief of staff.

Today’s appointments were as follow:

- Eskandar Rahim Mashaie, The Middle East

- Shamos-din Hosseini, Africa

- Hamid Baqaie, Asia

- Mohammad Abbasi, Latin America

- Mohammad Mehdi Akhoond-Zadeh, The Caspian Sea

Ahmadinejad did not choose any representative for Europe or America, apparently not wanting to overtly interfere with Khamenei’s dominant position regarding the country's relations with the West.

For the texts of Ahmadinejad's appointments (in Farsi), please see: http://www.isna.ir/ISNA/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-1613668&Lang=P