MP says Iran shuttered embassies over lack of funding
According to one Iranian parliamentarian, financial issues were behind Iran's closing of a number of embassies, for which the Foreign Ministry has long complained of a lack of funding.
In a March 24 interview with ICANA, parliamentarian Bagher Hosseini discussed the troubles facing Iran’s diplomatic institutions. According to Hosseini, “Some embassies have essentially been closed” due to financial issues.
Hosseini did not go into detail on which or how many embassies have been closed but he called the situation “very undesirable for the Islamic Republic.” He said that in the last few years, members of the parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy commission, where he serves on the executive board, have visited some of Iran’s embassies and concluded that many were operating under inadequate conditions.
Hosseini said, “After the nuclear deal and the expansion of ties between Iran and other countries, we certainly need strong diplomatic missions.” He called the budget for Iran’s Foreign Ministry in the upcoming year “very small and insignificant,” and asked members of parliament to seek “appropriate remedies” for the issue.
Whether Hosseini’s comments are rooted in a desire to apply public pressure regarding the Foreign Ministry’s budget or not, this is not the first time the issue has come up. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had reportedly discussed the need to increase his ministry’s budget with the commission in January, citing an “expansion of responsibilities.”
