Will Rouhani’s New Choice for UN Envoy Revive Iran’s Economy?

Reports from Vienna have been positive: the P5+1 countries and Iran may just be able to hammer out an agreement on Iran’s nuclear program in time to meet the July 20 deadline. US-Iran relations could be on the mend, or at least moving towards a thaw. And one man may have more power over the future of these relations than most: Mohammad Nahavandia, rumored to be appointed as Iran’s envoy to the United Nations.

Though Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkhan has denied claims that a decision has been reached, international and Iranian media have reported that President Hassan Rouhani hopes to send Nahavandian, currently his chief of staff, to the UN after the United States blocked his original choice, Hamid Aboutalebi, in April.

Those who have worked with the US-educated economist describe him as a good listener, an advocate of free market economy and a pragmatic decision-maker. A close confidante of Rouhani, if appointed, Nahavandian will not only represent Iran at the UN, but also play a key role in rebuilding relations between the US and Iran.   

“Within the inner circles of the Islamic Republic, people speak of Nahavandian’s intelligence, broad knowledge and economic understanding,” said one insider with close ties to the Iranian government. In a country where cronyism is rife, and power is determined through fierce competition for the Supreme Leader’s attention and good graces, Nahavandian comes across as self-contained, almost aloof. One economist who met him at an Iran’s Chamber of Commerce function when it was run by Nahavandian told IranWire”, “When you interact with him you can feel he is paying attention to what you say, not who you are”. Nahvandian is not a showman who makes fiery speeches and controversial, dramatic statements. He does not have to play the part of a revolutionary or prove his commitment to the Islamic Republic: he simply is a revolutionary.

Despite Nahavandian’s quiet demeanor, his credentials have not gone unnoticed by the Supreme Leader. Many say Khamenei views Nahavandian as his first choice for the UN position.

The Quiet Revolutionary

In many ways, Nahavandian is a true diplomat who has forged strong relationships with powerful individuals across Iran’s political spectrum. He’s worked closely with the speaker of the parliament, Ali Larijani, an influential conservative with close ties to the Supreme Leader; he also served as a deputy minister in former reformist president Mohammad Khatami’s administration. A strong supporter of the free market economy, he is also regarded as the perfect model of an Islamist technocrat who spends his free time reading economic textbooks and solving word puzzles.

In 2007, Nahavandian was appointed head of Iran’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Mining (ICCIM), putting him in close contact with influential players in both government and business. While there, Nahavandian worked hard to protect the country’s private sector from the economic excesses of then-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and increased interference from the Revolutionary Guards. He raised the media profile of Iranian business, regarding the ICCM as a diplomatic tool that could maintain economic channels in an increasingly difficult environment.

When Rouhani appointed him as chief of staff, he applied what he learned at the ICCIM to his new role, inviting academics, activists and influential Iranians living abroad to his office at the Expediency Council in Niavaran. He listened to their views on the socio-economic challenges Iran and Rouhani’s administration faced. One academic we spoke to said the meeting was exciting and full of hope: “Here I was, talking to incoming government officials freely and without fear”.  Everyone was given the opportunity to speak, he said, and “Mr. Nahavandian took notes the whole time, raising his head only to ask specific questions when something attracted his attention”.

Links to the Islamic Republic's Founding Fathers

Though he has been criticized for the considerable time he’s spent in the United States, Nahavandian has close ties with the founding fathers of Islamic Republic, a fact often ignored by Iranian media. A former student of Ayatollah Morteza Motahari, one of the driving forces and ideologues of the Islamic Republic, Nahavandian grew up in one of Tehran's oldest neighborhoods and returned to Iran before the revolution. At a time when some Iranian politicians sidestep bonafide academic credentials, calling in favors and forging documents (one senior member of former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration made false claims that he was a Cambridge University alumni), Nahavandian’s education—he’s a graduate of George Washington University and holds a PhD in economics—sets him apart.

If appointed, the U.S. will like Nahavandian’s enthusiasm for a free market economy—as well as his refusal to resort to stock assumptions and incendiary statements about the West. Nahavandian also has a Green Card, which has led to controversy in both the U.S. and Iran. When Nahavandian traveled to the States in 2006, then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice claimed she would revoke Nahavandian’s residency in a bid to quell U.S. right-wing media and politicians. This kind of controversy may well pop up again. But for those in Iran who feel threatened by Nahavandian’s mild manner and quiet confidence, his position in New York, away from Iran’s inner sanctum of political power in Tehran, can only be a good thing.

As the deadline for a final agreement approaches over Iran’s nuclear program, it’s natural to assume that President Hassan Rouhani  will see how improved relations with the U.S. might play a part in helping Iran rebuild its economy. Politicians of all stripes in Iran hope to benefit from the country’s re-entry on the international economic stage, whatever their view is on nuclear negotiations. It could be that the quiet economist from Rouhani’s Presidential Palace is one of the few people who has real potential for ushering in the economic and geopolitical opportunities the country so badly needs.