Ahmadinejad Fires Foreign Minister: A Sign of Rising Internal Tensions

James Phillips / December 15, 2010

The sudden firing of Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki while he was abroad on a diplomatic mission lying for his country is a sign of growing political tension within Iran’s increasingly isolated government. The abrupt sacking of Mottaki, who has served as Iran’s top diplomat since the installation of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government in 2005, is another indication of growing schisms in the ruling establishment, which is under increasing international pressure due to its continued defiance on the nuclear issue. Mottaki has been replaced on an interim basis by the head of Iran’s nuclear program, Ali Akbar Salehi, a strong supporter and key aide to President Ahmadinejad. Mottaki was known to have personal ties to members of Iran’s parliament who have been critical of the divisive Iranian president. Iran’s parliament, dominated by hardliners, increasingly has clashed with the aggressive Ahmadinejad as he has sought to consolidate his own power in the aftermath of last year’s sham elections.

Although Iran’s state-run media gave no reason for the firing, it is likely that Ahmadinejad is making Mottaki the scapegoat for a series of diplomatic embarrassments that the regime has suffered in recent months. Iran was singled out in a U.N. resolution for human rights violations, denied a seat on the U.N. Women’s Rights Panel and blocked from hosting a UNESCO conference on philosophy because of its lack of freedoms. (more…)