Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani mounted a rosy defense of Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif after the latter was cornered by the hard-line lawmakers who are in full control of the country’s new parliament.
In a televised cabinet meeting July 8, Rouhani expressed admiration for Zarif as the embodiment of Iran’s political power. Rouhani also borrowed from the “constant praise” that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has lent Zarif and his emphasis that the foreign minister “ought to be respected.”
