TEHRAN: Iran's foreign policy will not be affected by the firing of the foreign minister, the ministry spokesman said Tuesday, amid criticism by lawmakers and the media over the president's unexpected decision. Ramin Mehmanparast told reporters in his weekly news briefing that the abrupt dismissal of Manouchehr Mottaki would have little effect since Iran's foreign policy is “decided at higher levels,” a reference to the president and Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “With the change, we will not see any alteration of Iran's basic policies,” including nuclear talks with world powers, he said. The remarks came a day after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sacked Mottaki while he was on a diplomatic trip to Senegal. Mehmanparast declined to explain why the order was given as the minister was in the middle of an assignment abroad. “Mottaki was committed to diplomatic dignities and did not follow the attitudes of Ahmadinejad,” who is famous for his blunt anti-West rhetoric, he said. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's brusk firing of his foreign minister drew sharp criticism at home Tuesday, re-igniting divisions between him and fellow conservatives who have long resented what they see as the Iranian president's power grabs. What remains unclear is the more crucial question of whether the move will cause tensions between Ahmadinejad and Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who holds ultimate power in the country and has clashed with the president over political appointments in the past. Most Tehran newspapers reported the change in their front pages on Tuesday with big headlines, many criticizing the timing of the dismissal as inappropriate since Mottaki was on a diplomatic mission.
