TEHRAN, Iran — When Hassan Rouhani first became president in 2013, he had a mentor: two-time President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. At the time, Rouhani's rivals hinted that the real president would be Rafsanjani, despite the fact that Rouhani had an unrivaled experience in diplomacy and security affairs, alongside his extensive experience in the parliament and his standing as a senior cleric.
Now that Rouhani is starting his second term, and Rafsanjani has died, Rouhani seems ready to start a new chapter that could differ from the previous one, given the achievements, failures and changes that took place in his first term, including reaching a nuclear deal with world powers and the emergence of US President Donald Trump, who has expressed his dismay over the deal.