Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's Memoirs - October 18, 1999 Mahmoud Vaezi, the then Deputy Foreign Minister, expressed concerns about the unfavorable circumstances surrounding President Khatami’s visit to France.

General Pervez Musharraf, the military ruler of Pakistan, announced that a National Security Council with six members will soon be established to govern the country. The United States has also announced partial sanctions against Pakistan.

The German government has stated that President [Seyyed Mohammad] Khatami’s visit to Germany would not be appropriate before the release of [Helmut] Hofer, [a German businessman].

In the late morning, we held a meeting with the deputies of the Strategic Research Center [of the Expediency Discernment Council]. We discussed issues such as the obstacles and requirements for technology acquisition, the challenges of complying with international conventions we have joined, especially in light of Islamic rulings, and other strategic matters.

Mr. [Mahmoud] Vaezi, [Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Economic Affairs], spoke about the unsatisfactory conditions of the President’s visit to France, calling it an affront to the dignity of the revolution.

In the afternoon, Mr. [Mohammad Mohammadi] Reyshahri, [custodian of the Holy Shrine of Abdol Azim], came by. He brought some publications from the Hadith Center and invited me to the inauguration of the Hadith College. He expressed concerns about the political and cultural situation in the country, and we discussed possible remedies. He was also dissatisfied with the state of the leftist press.

In Tajikistan, tensions between [Abdullah] Nouri, [leader of the Islamic Renaissance Party], and [Akbar] Turajanzadeh, [Deputy of the United Tajik Opposition], have become public, with Turajanzadeh being sidelined. This rift is expected to be costly for their Islamic movement. In Chechnya, the war continues, with the Russians holding the upper hand.

[Madeleine Albright], the U.S. Secretary of State, has made harsh statements against Iran.