Iran's new president presented his cabinet to parliament on Sunday for a vote of confidence, Iranian state media reported. The president nominated seasoned, pragmatic diplomat Abbas Araqchi as foreign minister at a time of rising regional tensions.
President Masoud Pezeshkian formed his cabinet at a time when the risk of the conflict in Gaza escalating into a wider regional war is growing. The developments come after the recent assassinations of the leader of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, in Iran and Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr, in Beirut, which prompted threats of retaliation against Israel.
Following the death of hardline President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May, Pezeshkian won a snap election last month on a promise to improve relations with the world, promote a pragmatic foreign policy and ease social restrictions at home.
Pezeshkian's proposed cabinet line-up requires parliamentary approval and parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said parliamentary committees would begin reviewing the candidates on Monday (August 12).
Araqchi, 61, who served as Iran's ambassador to several countries, including Japan, played a key role in negotiating Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with six world powers. U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the accord in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Iran.
Araqchi then led Iranian negotiators in a multilateral — ultimately unsuccessful — effort to revive the pact through indirect diplomacy with Washington before he was replaced by hardline Ali Bagheri Kani in 2021.
The president's powers in the Islamic Republic are limited by those of the Supreme Leader, who is commander-in-chief of the armed forces, appoints the head of the judiciary and has the final say on major policies.
Tensions between Iran and the West have risen over Tehran's rapidly expanding nuclear program and its threat to “punish severely” Israel for Haniyeh's murder.
Tehran and Hamas accused Israel of being the perpetrator, although Israel has neither claimed nor denied responsibility for the killing.
Separately, Iran's president nominated Mohsen Paknezhad as oil minister. He had served as deputy oil minister and oversaw hydrocarbon resources between 2018 and 2021.
Pezeshkian also nominated Farzaneh Sadeq as minister of roads and transport. If approved by parliament, she would be the second female minister in the history of the Islamic Republic.
The first female prime minister was appointed in 2009 by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a hardliner who was president at the time.
According to the arrangement proposed by the president, the Intelligence minister under Raisi's government, Esmail Khatib, will retain his position in the new cabinet. (my/lt)
