Omid Memarian
omid@memarian.info
Sixth Majlis representative Ali Mazroui discussed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's New York visit next week in an interview with Rooz. This political activist believes that the president's behavior is never predictable and hopes that Ahmadinejad's presence at the United Nations does not make matters worse than they currently are for Iran.
Rooz (R): What kind of discussions do you expect Mr. Ahmadinejad to raise in his trip next week to the United Nations?
Ali Mazroui (AM): That is a very difficult question, because Mr. Ahmadinejad is not predictable in any way. I personally hope that he does not make matters worse than they currently are for Iran, and does not raise issues that would lead to further isolation and sanctions and more problems for the country.
R: Mr. Ahmadinejad travels to New York ever year. What kind of discussions may be helpful in correcting previous years' trend?
AM: Mr. Ahmadinejad has a system of thought that he cannot change. This system of thought, in the past three years, has led to certain behaviors that apparently we cannot expect the president to dispose with. These behaviors were responsible for making relations deteriorate more and more between Iran and the international community.
R: In light of the International Atomic and Energy Agency's most recent report, how do you evaluate the president's stance on the nuclear issue?
AM: The general reaction of Iranian officials to the report indicates that no change has occurred in their stances and that [the president] has held onto his old stance on the nuclear issue. Unfortunately, I do not see a positive future on this path.
R: Efforts have been made in the past few months to establish a U.S. Interests Section office in Tehran. Is it possible that the president's trip to New York could ease this path, especially in light of prior positive remarks by Iranian officials?
AM: Iranian diplomats have taken two different stances on this issue, but all have put a precondition that the United States must change its behavior first. I think this issue is off the table and no advancement or progress would be made during this trip regarding this matter.
R: You say that the president's repeated trips do not help to improve Iran's image in the International community. In your opinion, why is he so fond of such trips?
AM: Generally, Mr. Ahmadinejad has had a very strong liking during his tenure for making trip, especially to countries that they wanted to show they have very active policies toward, such as Latin American and Middle Eastern countries. Other than these two regions, trips have been made to Italy and the United States. These trips mostly have propaganda value as he wants to show that he is pursuing an active diplomacy. I think these trips can be evaluated in the framework of his propaganda logic, as he would very much like to be covered in newspaper headlines.
