Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – September 10, 1988

In the morning news, Iraq was condemned for the very extensive use of chemical weapons against the Iraqi Kurds, and more importantly, the approval of a bill in the US Senate and House of Representatives to cut off US aid and credits to Iraq and prevent international credits; America's move against Iraq seems serious.

I went to the parliament. The Chinese delegation came to meet. They had wide proposals for cooperation in the construction and transfer of important military industries and participation in reconstruction.

I spoke with the president and the prime minister on the phone and we completed the proposed cabinet. Mr. [Abdul Hossein] Wahaji, Acting Minister of Commerce, came. Discussions were held regarding the implementation of Imam's recent opinion on the freedom of import and especially on how to free the import for the private sector.

In the evening, Mr. [Youssef] bin Alavi, the foreign minister of Oman, came to meet about Iran's cooperation with the countries of the south of the Persian Gulf and brought the proposal of Saudi Arabia. He said something in a private meeting about negotiating with our oil minister to maintain the price of oil and stop advertising against each other.

The deputies of the Ministry of Information came. They said about the centralization of information matters and the removal of the right to work information from other institutions. On the first night Mr. [Mohammed Javad] Larijani came and reported on his trip to France, Italy and Germany, all of which agree with our views in the Geneva negotiations.

At night, in the meeting of the heads of forces, we discussed the problems of the Ministry of Information. It was decided to negotiate with the Saudi oil minister, along with a commission composed of the oil ministers of Iran, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, and Kuwait.