Rouhani Accepts Resignations of Ministers of Roads and Urban Development and Industry, Mine and Trade

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, accepted the resignations of Abbas Akhoundi, Minister of Roads and Urban Development, and Mohammad Shariatmadari, Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade, on Saturday evening, October 20. He appointed Mohammad Islami and Reza Rahmani as caretakers of these ministries. Abbas Akhoundi published his resignation letter on Saturday morning, citing his disagreement with the 'maximum government intervention policy in the market and the method of organizing economic affairs in light of the current conditions of the country' as the reason for his resignation. He emphasized that 'the management of the new difficult conditions resulting from U.S. sanctions' has led to the violation of three principles: 'adherence to the law', 'respect for property rights', and 'competitive market economy'. However, Rouhani did not respond to Akhoundi's criticisms of the government's actions to counter U.S. sanctions in his acceptance of the resignation, only thanking him for his efforts. The acceptance of the resignations of the two ministers comes at a time when Rouhani must also introduce successors for the dismissed ministers of economy and cooperatives, labor, and social welfare to the parliament. Meanwhile, ISNA news agency reported, citing 'informed sources', that Rouhani is set to introduce four proposed ministers to the parliament on Sunday. According to this news agency, Farhad Dejpasand, former deputy of the Planning and Budget Organization, will be nominated for the Ministry of Economy, and Mohammad Shariatmadari will be nominated for the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare. Before the resignations of Mohammad Shariatmadari and Abbas Akhoundi, several representatives had submitted a motion for the impeachment of these two ministers. However, in recent days, reports have emerged about the possibility of introducing Mohammad Shariatmadari for the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, which some parliament members criticized, referring to the impeachment motion against him. Meanwhile, speculation about the successors of Abbas Akhoundi and Mohammad Shariatmadari in the Ministries of Roads and Urban Development and Industry, Mine and Trade is expected to heat up soon. Mohammad Islami, the caretaker of the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, has previously held positions such as Deputy for Industrial and Research Affairs in the Ministry of Defense and Chairman of the Board of the National Construction Company affiliated with the Foundation of the Oppressed. He has also been the Chairman of the Board of Iran Housing and Urban Development Company. Reza Rahmani, the caretaker of the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade, is also the Deputy for Planning and Programs of this ministry and has previously served as a representative of Tabriz in the parliament several times.