Members of the Central Council of the Islamic Civilization Party came to see me. They reported on their activities and difficulties and asked me to become involved in parliamentary, executive, or at least cultural affairs.
Members of the Central Council of the Islamic Civilization Party came to see me. They reported on their activities and difficulties and asked me to become involved in parliamentary, executive, or at least cultural affairs. They also sought my advice on how to activate their party. I offered some recommendations on moderation and attracting centrist forces.
My brother Mohammad, [Deputy Executive Affairs Officer to the President], came to see me. He asked me to help ease the restrictions on visits to Mr. [Gholamhossein] Karbaschi.
Mr. [Gholamreza] Motamedi-Nia, representative of Kahnuj, came to see me. He thanked me for the development and security services I had provided to the region. He expressed concern about declining security and development, youth unemployment, and, in particular, the failure to pursue the important nuclear power plant project that had been planned for Jazmuri an. He described the country's situation as worrying because of political extremism, unemployment, and rising prices. He asked for assistance in completing housing units in Qom for clerics from Kahnuj; I had helped with this project before. He said that the mountain road between Kahnuj and Jask had greatly benefited the region and the villages along its route. This road was under construction on my instructions, with funding from the Presidential Office for Deprived Regions.
In the afternoon, [Spyros Kyprianou], President of the House of Representatives of Cyprus, came to see me. Most of our discussion concerned Kosovo and the dispute between the Turkish Cypriot areas and the main part of Cyprus. He said that the Turkish Cypriots wanted partition and independence and that the United States was backing them.
After his meeting, Mr. [Mohsen] Aminzadeh, [Deputy Foreign Minister for Asia and the Pacific], complained about military movements along the Afghan border by the Revolutionary Guards, the army, and Afghan groups.
Mr. [Mohsen] Nourbakhsh, [Governor of the Central Bank], came to see me. He explained the country's foreign-exchange difficulties and expressed frustration over the Supreme Leader's opposition to obtaining a loan from the International Monetary Fund. He asked me to help secure permission for the loan. I asked why Mr. [Seyyed Mohammad] Khatami, [the president], was not taking action. He replied that Khatami was concerned about the consequences of the criticism he might face. I said that if Khatami believed the loan was in the country's best interests, he should not allow such considerations to hold him back.
The victory of [Ehud] Barak, leader of Israel's Labor Party, over [Benjamin] Netanyahu, leader of Likud, was a major international development and had increased hopes for peace. Other important news included Mrs. [Sonia] Gandhi's resignation from the leadership of India's Congress Party and reports confirming the claim that [Asif Ali Zardari], the husband of Mrs. [Benazir] Bhutto, had attempted suicide in prison.
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