Mr Mottaki, who is currently in Senegal on an official visit, was appointed foreign minister in 2005 Iran’s foreign minister is sacked
Mr Mottaki, who is currently in Senegal on an official visit, was appointed foreign minister in 2005 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has fired Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran’s official Irna news agency reports.
Initial reports gave no reason for the decision.
There had been no indication Mr Mottaki, a key figure in Iran’s nuclear negotiations with the West, was about to lose his job.
News reports suggest Mr Ahmadinejad has appointed the country’s top nuclear official to replace Mr Mottaki.
State television reported Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation and a close ally of the president, would take over in a caretaker capacity.
Analysts say Mr Mottaki’s dismissal may be part of a political power play between conservatives and liberals in Iran.
“I appreciate your diligence and services as the foreign minister,” said Mr Ahmadinejad in a letter to Mr Mottaki, Mehr news agency reported.
Analysis
Analysts believe the dismissal may be part of a fight for power within the ruling conservative movement in Iran – between the president and parliament. Mr Mottaki was widely seen as an ally of the speaker of parliament, Ali Larijani.
His sacking is likely to anger President Ahmadinejad’s conservative opponents in parliament.
The dismissal is likely to have had the support of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. It may be another sign the supreme leader continues to back Mr Ahmadinejad in the president’s power struggles inside the country.
Mr Mottaki had faced criticism in Iran over the international pressure on the country to halt its nuclear enrichment programme.
A fourth round of UN Security Council sanctions was imposed in June.
But recently concluded talks in Geneva ended with an agreement to hold more talks in Istanbul next month.
Iran insists it wants only atomic energy but a number of Western countries suspect it of trying to build nuclear weapons.
A well-known figure inside Iran, Mr Salehi led the early response to the attacks in Tehran two weeks ago on two prominent nuclear scientists.
Manouchehr MottakiBorn in 1953, speaks English, Turkish and UrduElected to the first Majlis (parliament) after the Iranian revolution in 1979Appointed foreign minister in August 2005Strong defender of Iran’s nuclear programme
Mr Salehi now gets to take his enthusiastic support of Iran’s nuclear ambitions on to a wider stage, analysts say.
Mr Mottaki, who is currently in Senegal on an official visit, was appointed foreign minister in 2005.
A career diplomat, the 57-year-old speaks fluent English, Turkish and Urdu, and gained a postgraduate degree in international relations from Tehran University in 1991.
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