TEHRAN — An influential Iranian ex-president is calling for deep changes in the country's foreign policy, saying Iran can no longer remain “angry with the world.” The statement by Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani is an unusually pointed criticism of the combative style of outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose critics say has internationally isolated Iran. Rafsanjani made the remarks during a meeting with university teachers in Tehran that was posted on his website, hashemirafsanjani.ir, on Monday. His ally Hasan Rohani won a landslide victory in June 14 presidential election, and will be sworn in Aug. 4, replacing Ahmadinejad. Rohani has pledged to follow a “path of moderation” and interaction with the outside world, reviving hopes for easing of tensions with the West. Rafsanjani's comments contrasted with Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's warning on Sunday that Washington was “not trustworthy.” “I said at the beginning of the (Iranian) year that I am not optimistic about negotiations with the US, though in the past years I did not forbid negotiating (with them) about certain issues like Iraq,” he told top officials at an “iftar” meal. Khamenei said in March he was “not optimistic” over the prospects of direct talks with Tehran's archfoe on the sidelines of its nuclear negotiations with major powers. “The Americans are ... not trustworthy and they are not honest in their encounters... The stance of American officials over past months once again confirms that one should not be optimistic,” he said at the iftar, attended by centrist cleric Rohani and outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The comments from Khamenei, who has the final say in the regime's macro policy issues, came less than a week after former US officials and dozens of American lawmakers called for President Barack Obama to pursue diplomacy with Rohani. In a letter to Obama, the ex-policymakers said the election of Rohani, who takes office on August 3, “presents a major potential opportunity.” “We strongly encourage your administration to seize the moment to pursue new multilateral and bilateral negotiations with Iran once Rohani takes office and to avoid any provocative action that could narrow the window of opportunity for a more moderate policy out of Tehran,” they wrote. And two members of the House of Representatives – Republican Charles Dent and Democrat David Price – have led a call for Obama to “utilize all diplomatic tools” with Iran's new president. The lawmakers noted that the presidency in Iran had limited powers but said it “would be a mistake not to test” Rohani. “In interacting with the world it's a skill to continue your path without the other side being able to prevent you. If not you have lost,” Khamenei added, alluding to Iran's future nuclear talks with world powers after Rohani, who once served as his country's top nuclear negotiator, takes over from Ahmadinejad. – Agencies
