Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – January 13, 1997

Ministry of Defense information protection staff came. Mr. [Mohammed] Faruzandeh, [Minister of Defense] and Mr. [Shakrullah] Riazi, [Information Protection Commander of the Ministry of Defense] reported and I talked about the delicacy of this job and the need to pay attention to health and not to slow down the work. Mr. [Sidjavad] Angji, the new ambassador to South Korea, came to get an opinion and say goodbye. I said that according to the conditions of relations with North Korea, the conditions for developing cooperation with South Korea have become more ready; He complained about the pressures on him.

Mr. [Syed Mohammad] Gharehi, [Minister of Post, Telegraph and Telephone] came. He talked about the purchase of satellites and their number, as well as the purchase of mobile phones, and said that some of Mr. Natiq's [Nouri] friends and Mr. Ray Shahri have suggested him to run for the presidency, and that it would be a low-risk competitor for the purpose of heating up the election. Mr. [Reza] Amrollahi, [head of the Atomic Energy Organization] came. He said about his promotion in the nomination of the Secretary of the International Nuclear Energy Agency and the pressure on China to fulfill the obligations and problems caused by the inspections.

The central council of the consolidation of unity office came; Except for one person, all of them are newly elected. They said that their positions have been adjusted a little and they asked for help. They complain about the Basij forces' pressure in universities. In the evening, in the meeting of the government board, we had some resolutions. I was the guest of Ayatollah Khamenei at the Iftar. We talked about my trip to Kish and Ilam and his trip to the north, as well as about the elections and [Abdul Halim] Khodam's trip from Syria to Iran and the issues of Afghanistan and Iraq.

I came home Fati and the children have returned from Umrah. They praised and were satisfied with the families of Fahd [King of Saudi Arabia] and Amir Abdullah [Crown Prince] and other Saudi princes who met at the Riyadh banquet. They have found them moral, religious and loving.