The demarche of former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who nominated himself for the next presidential election despite the ban on Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei (rahbar), may cost him a political career. In 2013, the spiritual leader, who is the real head of state, formally appointed Ahmadinejad as a member of the Council of Expediency, a body that mediates disputes between the Iranian parliament and the Guardian Council, and is also a consultant to Rahbar. Making the Council one of the most authoritative governing bodies in the country. However, the policy of his role, which the Iranian can only dream of, apparently did not satisfy.
The act of the former president, famous for his harsh anti-Israeli and anti-American statements, can not be explained. Some analysts have started talking about the "Trump incident" - most likely, due to some eccentricity of both politicians who dared to challenge the current authorities. But in the case of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, there will be no surprises.
According to the principle of "velayat al-fakih" in the Islamic Republic of Iran (Islamic Republic of Iran), the ruling of the clergy, candidates is claimed by Ayatollah Khamenei. Today there are more than 1,600 nominees, and, among them, almost one and a half hundred women. But by the end of April the Rahbar will leave in the list no more than ten people who will take part in the first round of the elections on May 19. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad among the candidates, of course, will not.
Nevertheless, his unexpected self-nomination allowed us to divert ourselves from the presidential campaign in France and shift our attention to the Greater Middle East. In Iran, the political struggle, as you see, is no less interesting and eventful than in Europe. And although the general direction of the country's development is set by its indiscriminate spiritual leader, each president is able to make important elements, creatively interpret the teachings of Ayatollah Khamenei.
The main contender is the current president Hassan Rouhani, who visited Moscow at the end of March. With him (although it was not thanks to him, but rather the active policy of Russia in Syria), we began to develop closer economic relations, over the past year the trade turnover between the two countries grew by 70 percent. Today, the point is that an agreement on a free trade zone will be signed between Iran and the EEA..
In my opinion, the current president is preferable to us simply because we have been dealing with him for several years. However, in relations between the two countries, it is unlikely that there will be a radical change if Iran is headed by another challenger - Ebrahim Raisi. In the past, the Prosecutor General of Iran, now he heads the largest Islamic fund "Astana Kuds Razavi".
However, not his position and past merits determine in Iran preferences of the electorate. Ebrahim Raisi is called a student of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which automatically makes him popular among ordinary Iranians. However, Hasan Rouhani is also devoted to the living rahbaru.
At a young age he traveled all over the country and campaigned for Khomeini, and then fled with him to Paris. He followed him and back to Teheran, when in 1978 the Islamic revolution began here. I would say that if we consider the trust relationship with the Supreme Leader as a criterion, Rouhani and Raisa have equal chances.
Between the two contenders, sparks are continually being cut, as it should be in the case of a sharp political struggle. For example, Ebrahim Raisi recently accused the president of using an administrative resource. "Radio and television are constantly broadcasting your speeches, and it will be a shame if this propaganda spoils our rivalry," Raisi wrote in a telegram addressed to Rouhani. Iran, of course, can not be called a secular state, but there is quite secular competition here.
Our relations with Iran are not easy. It is a self-sufficient country, which since the middle of the last century has lived under various sanctions. The other day the United States announced that the sanctions will be strengthened, which, I think, amused the politicians of Tehran, who long ago ceased to notice both "isolation" and various "blockades" of Western countries. But to join the blockade of Russia here are very sensitive.
The Iranians still can not forget that in 2010 we did not risk selling them the S-300 systems, despite the agreements. This "betrayal" was vigorously discussed in the Iranian press, a few years later, IRI filed suit for $ 4 billion in the International Arbitration Court of Geneva to "Rosoboronexport". However, it was immediately announced that Tehran is ready to withdraw the claim for the S-300 supply if Russia implements this contract.
In 2015, the dispute was settled, to date, the S-300 are in service with the Iranian army.
However, the confidence in us began to recover only after intervention in the Middle East conflict on the side of Syria. And only recently, when it became clear that the assessments of Moscow and Tehran of the American attack on the Syrian airfield "Shayrat" coincided, the Iranian press voiced the definition of Russia as its ally.
I do not think that friendship with Iran will ever be linked to us - we are too different. However, to build good-neighborly relations with this peculiar country, we simply must. However, as with all other neighbors.