Memories of Akbar Hashemi - June 1, 2002

Mr. Zanganeh confirmed that Mr. Kharrazi, [the Minister of Foreign Affairs], resigned following Mr. Khatami's refusal to support him against the criticisms of the parliament, but his resignation has not been accepted.

The European Union has given the United States a two-week deadline to amend its imported steel tariffs and has threatened to retaliate after the two weeks.

Complete text of the daily report:

My brother Mohammad, [a member of the Expediency Council] came. I said it is not appropriate for him to conduct interviews of the kind of the last two interviews; because the far-right and far-left show harmful reactions, examples of which we see. The Infrastructure Commission [of the Expediency Council] had a meeting regarding the general policies of the agricultural sector. A clause was approved regarding the necessity of ensuring food security from domestic sources in essential goods.

I asked Mr. [Bijan Namdar] Zangeneh, [Minister of Oil], about the gas exports to Turkey. He said that they have significantly reduced extraction recently. He confirmed that Mr. [Kamal] Kharrazi, [Minister of Foreign Affairs], resigned following Mr. Khatami's refusal to support him against the parliamentary criticisms, but his resignation has not been accepted.

In the afternoon, Mr. [Saeed] Faqih, the head of the [Postal] Company, came. He insisted that I prepare for the upcoming presidency. He suggested using national codes and postal codes for advertising. I said that, firstly, I would not accept, and secondly, I am not in favor of advertising, and in all past elections, I have never engaged in advertising and have not spent a single rial on it. It is possible that individuals have acted on their own. Today, newspapers have reported, through [Ali Akbar] Mousavi Khomeini, the representative of Tehran, that the personal wealth of Mr. [Mohammad Hassan] Malekmadani, the mayor of Tehran, amounts to 17 billion tomans, which is surprising.

For the third time this week, a number of Afghan people have been killed and injured due to a mistake by American military forces in Afghanistan. It was announced that 90 patients in a London hospital have contracted cholera due to diseases of British soldiers who had developed a mysterious illness in Afghanistan. Armed conflicts have erupted in various parts of Afghanistan. Tensions between India and Pakistan have escalated, and the United Nations has withdrawn its forces from both countries, and in Kashmir, explosions have resulted in casualties among Indians.

Israel has launched attacks on most cities in Palestine and has detained a large number of people. The European Union has given the United States a two-week deadline to amend its import steel tariffs and has threatened to retaliate after two weeks if no action is taken.