Rouhani: The Era of Extremism and Security Atmosphere is Over

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, emphasized that the "era of extremism and security atmosphere" is over, stating that if necessary, he would introduce 50 science ministers to the parliament, but he would not "stop" on the path he has promised to students. His remarks come as Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, recently stated that the human rights situation in Iran during Rouhani's presidency is "as bad" as during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's time and in some cases, "even worse." Ebadi added that "Rouhani cannot achieve much due to the resistance shown by hardliners in the government." Rouhani announced that he would present the 94 budget bill "without deficit" to the parliament next week, mentioning the "resources and expenditures" of this year's budget as 219 trillion tomans. According to the state news agency IRNA, Rouhani reiterated on Tuesday, December 2, during the government delegation's trip to Golestan province, that he would remain "faithful" to his promises made during the 2013 presidential election. On Wednesday, December 3, parliament representatives gave their vote of confidence to Mohammad Farhadi, Rouhani's fifth proposed candidate for the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology. Es'haq Jahangiri, the First Vice President, stated on Saturday, December 6, during Farhadi's introduction as Minister of Science that he is of the same "type" as previous ministers and has no difference in political, managerial, and scientific thinking compared to previous ministers. Rouhani continued his remarks by emphasizing that no one should violate the law, adding: "All those who, God forbid, have deviated from the path of the law yesterday or today must know that today our nation will stand united against law evasion, violations, and corruption." The President of Iran referred to what he called "conspiratorial hands in the region and the world" as the causes of the drop in oil prices and stated that despite this, the 94 budget bill would be presented to the parliament "without deficit" next week. He mentioned the "resources and expenditures" of the 94 budget as 219 trillion tomans and the development budget for this year as 46.1 trillion tomans, while also estimating that this budget might change "slightly" by next week. The "volume of the government's general budget" for this year was announced as 195 trillion tomans. Concurrently with Rouhani's remarks, Gholamreza Kateb, the spokesman for the parliament's Program and Budget Commission, announced on Tuesday that the government has considered the price of each barrel of crude oil at $70 in the 1394 budget bill, while the price of oil in the 93 budget was predicted at $100 per barrel. The price of oil in global markets has continued to decline, reaching its lowest point in five years, following OPEC's decision on Thursday, December 6, not to reduce production. Bijan Zanganeh, Iran's Minister of Oil, stated on Friday, December 7, that OPEC's decision to maintain its production ceiling was not Iran's request, but Iran has no issue with this decision. The President of Iran further stated that the 1+5 group, "the West, the East, and the region" need "constructive interaction" with Iran, and that the "world" is also "in need" of Iran for regional and global security. He added: "The world today accepts that enrichment will take place on Iranian soil, the world today accepts that we will have a heavy water reactor in Arak, the world today accepts that we will continue research and development, the world today accepts that we will continue our activities in Fordow." Jen Psaki, the spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, also emphasized that the U.S. government does not wish to impose new sanctions during the "joint action" between Iran and the 5+1, expressing hope that the parties will reach an agreement for a comprehensive action by the end of March, after which experts will finalize the details. Iran and the 1+5 reached a "temporary" agreement in Geneva last year. The two sides agreed on December 3, after the deadline for reaching a comprehensive agreement expired, to extend negotiations for another seven months.