Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – February 7, 1997

Mr. [Mohammed Ali] Zam, [Director of the Islamic Propaganda Organization] and Mr. [Abd al-Hossein] Moazi, [Deputy Director of the Islamic Propaganda Organization,] came. They gave the report of the publishing works and asked for my memoirs and applied for secondary and artistic educational institutions. Mr. [Mohammed Mohammadi] Ray Shahri, [Astan guardian of Hazrat Abdulazim (PBUH)] and [Mohsen] Sharifi, [Executive and Coordination Deputy of Astan] came. They gave a report on the development of Astana and asked for an extension of the loan deadline that they obtained from the fund with my help. They had discussions about the [presidential] elections. He said that he told the leadership that if they support another candidate, he will withdraw. He requested to pay the rest of the installments for the construction of the University of Hadith Sciences, which will be built at my expense.

Mr. [Abu Talib] Shalchian, [President's Economic Adviser], came to report on economic affairs and asked for permission to spend time preparing his doctoral thesis. Dr. Velayati, [Minister of Foreign Affairs] and [Mrs. Mohammad Faruzandeh and Alireza Marandi], Ministers of Defense and Health, and Mr. [Mohsen] Nourbakhsh, [CEO of the Central Bank] came. We made a decision regarding the transfer of some valuable technologies in Russia, in the presence of [Mr. Mehdi Safari], our ambassador to Russia. I completed the work in the evening. We went to Tehran to see the progress of the mosque construction. There is no acceptable progress. Mr. [Hossein] Alayi explained. For the next year, we have budgeted five billion tomans, which will have a leap.

We went to Saad Abad for the Iftar ceremony of foreign ambassadors. First, Maghrib prayer was recited under my leadership and the presence of representatives of Islamic countries. After a light iftar, I appeared in the gathering of the entire Islamic and non-Islamic table. Dr. Velayati and the Syrian ambassador spoke as ambassadors. [Mr. Ahmed al-Hassan], the Syrian ambassador, had a good speech. I also explained about Iran's policies and achievements after the revolution. Then I attended the dinner. The companions were the ambassadors of Syria and Spain. [Mr. Fernando Jose Beloso], the ambassador of Spain, regretted the situation that happened to the ambassador of Colombia, that they arranged a marriage with the daughter of an Iranian businessman, and because of this, he became a Muslim, and now the girl's father opposes and attacked the ambassador's car, which was carrying the daughter and the ambassador. Dr. Velayati expressed his readiness to run for the [presidential] election. Before noon, Mr. Noorbakhsh also expressed his desire for the agents to nominate Dr. Velayati.