TEHRAN: A former commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards who is under US sanctions registered his candidacy Saturday for next month’s presidential election, state media reported.
Like other hopefuls, Vahid Haghanian, will have to wait to see if his candidacy is okayed by the Guardian Council, a 12-strong body of jurists dominated by conservatives that vets all candidates for public office.
Little information has been made public about Haghanian’s career in the Guards, the ideological arm of Iran’s armed forces.
Like late president Ebrahim Raisi whom he is seeking to succeed, Haghanian has been under US sanctions since 2019 for his role in supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s “inner circle responsible for advancing the regime’s domestic and foreign oppression.”
Haghanian said his candidacy was a “personal decision” but he was “fully familiar with the issues of the country.”
He said he had forged close ties with key officials in state institutions “during 45 years of service in the presidential administration and the office of the supreme leader.”
The June 28 election was called after Raisi was killed in a May 19 helicopter crash.
Candidate registration opened on Thursday and closes on Monday.
Others who have announced their candidacies include Tehran mayor Alireza Zakani and former lawmaker Zohreh Elahian, the first woman to enter the race.
Moderate ex-parliament speaker Ali Larijani, reformist former central bank governor Abdolnasser Hemmati and ultraconservative former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili have also registered.
The Guardian Council will announce the final list of candidates on June 11 after it has completed its vetting procedures.
The council disqualified several reformist and moderate candidates from the last presidential election in 2021, including former speaker Larijani.
Iran ex-Guards officer sanctioned by US launches presidential bid
https://arab.news/b7u42
Iran ex-Guards officer sanctioned by US launches presidential bid
- Haghanian under US sanctions since 2019 for role in supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s ‘inner circle’
Jordan-EU Summit confirms commitment to regional security, investment
- Jordan, EU to hold investment conference in April to enhance economic partnerships
- Ursula von der Leyen says King Abdullah is key partner for Europe in Middle East, relations between parties ‘built on stability, on security, but also on prosperity’
LONDON: King Abdullah II of Jordan hosted the first Jordan-EU Summit in Amman on Thursday, with European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in attendance.
King Abdullah noted that the summit had built on last year’s Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership agreement with the EU, enhancing political dialogue and economic cooperation, according to the Jordan News Agency.
He spoke of his appreciation of the EU’s support for Jordan’s modernization and highlighted the country’s readiness to enhance cooperation in security, defense, education, and youth empowerment.
“Our partnership is also vital in supporting sustainable growth, job creation, and innovation, by strengthening economic resilience and expanding cooperation in trade and investment,” King Abdullah added.
Crown Prince Hussein attended the expanded meeting with EU leaders at Al-Husseiniya Palace.
Jordan and the EU are to hold an investment conference in April to enhance economic partnerships between the two parties, while the first EU-Jordan Security and Defense Dialogue is also scheduled for this year in Amman.
Costa said that bilateral relations with Jordan were strong and would continue to strengthen. He praised Jordan’s initiatives to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza by establishing air and land corridors; its contribution to regional stability; its efforts to de-escalate tensions; and its pursuit of peace.
Von der Leyen said that King Abdullah was a key partner for Europe in the Middle East, and that relations between the EU and Jordan were “built on stability, on security, but also on prosperity.”
She added: “In times of growing geopolitical challenges, it is good to know that the European Union and Jordan stand side by side, because this is what friends do."
She noted that the EU aimed to increase investments in Jordan to 1.4 billion euros.
The summit also covered regional and international developments, including Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic, Ukraine, the reform of the Palestinian Authority, and Israeli settlement policy in the West Bank.
Jordan’s Prime Minister Jaafar Hassan, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Director of the Office of His Majesty Alaa Batayneh, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Zeina Toukan, Jordan’s Ambassador to Belgium Yousef Bataineh, and a number of European officials also attended the summit.
