Iran parliament endorses Rohani's diplomatic outreach
Conservative Iranian parliament issues vote of confidence in Rohani's UN 'charm offensive', praising president for portraying Iran as 'powerful' yet 'peace-seeking' nation. News came amid reports of harsh criticism by hard-line Iranian leaders, youths
Rohani's 'charm offensive', which ended with an historic phone call with US President Barack Obama, was received with mixed emotions in Iran with some youths protesting the phone call upon his return to the Islamic Republic and the head of the revolutionary guard slamming the move as premature.
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However, the backing from the assembly, controlled by political factions deeply loyal to Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is a further sign that Rohani has the backing of the Iranian establishment.
Rohani welcomed back in Tehran (Photo: AFP)
Khamenei, the most powerful figure in Iran, has yet to publicly comment on Rohani's trip but previous reports have quoted Rohani as claiming he has the Ayatollah's backing.
In the first joint meeting between president and parliament, Rohani briefed parliamentarians on his trip to New York, including discussions on Iran's nuclear dispute with the West and regional relations, the student news agency ISNA said late on Tuesday.
Two hundred and thirty parliamentarians, out of the total of 290, signed a statement expressing their support of Rohani for presenting the image of a "powerful and peace-seeking Iran which seeks talks and interaction for the settlement of regional and international issues," Fars news agency said.
The commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards said Monday that President Hassan Rohani should have refused to take last week's historic telephone call from US counterpart Barack Obama.
At the time it was the first public criticism by a senior Iranian official of Friday's landmark first contact between leaders of the two countries since the rupture of diplomatic relations in the aftermath of the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Upon returning from New York, hundreds of Iranians cheered President Hassan Rohani for the historic phone call but a smaller number of hardliners shouted "Death to America" and threw eggs and shoes at his official car leaving the airport, Iranian media reported.
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