Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had proposed his resignation because he was not informed about the visit of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to Tehran last week, ISNA (Iranian Students’ News Agency) has reported.
According to news reports, a source has cited foreign ministry spokesperson Bahram Qassemi as providing a reason for Zarif’s resignation, which confirms a narrative about Zarif’s resignation last week.
The Iranian foreign minister announced stepping down from his post via Instagram page last week, but however, Iranian president Hassan Rouhani had dismissed such resignation application by Zarif.
Zarif has surprised everyone when he announced that he was resigning via Instagram. But however, describing the acceptance of Zarif’s resignation as against the Islamic Republic’s interest, Rouhani has rejected his letter.
On his official Instagram account, Zarif said, “As a modest servant, I have never had any concern but elevating the foreign policy and the status of the foreign ministry.”
According to ISNA, Qassemi said, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not have information at any level [about the trip] and this lack of information was maintained until the end of the trip.”
The spokesman added that the unorthodox and very public resignation was meant to “return the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the diplomatic system of the country to its main place”.