ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Javad Zarif, one of Iran’s most recognized diplomats on Tuesday announced his return as the vice president for strategic affairs of President Masoud Pezeshkian, less than a month after submitting his resignation. “After the diligent follow-up and wise consultations of the honorable president, and by his written directive, with trust in God and hope for the cooperation and guidance of the honorable people, I will continue to fulfill my duties in the strategic vice presidency,” Zarif said in a statement on X. Pezeshkian appointed Zarif as the vice president for strategic affairs on August 2. Days later he announced his resignation from the post stating that “shortcomings” with the list of cabinet nominees submitted by Pezeshkian for parliamentary approval pushed him to make the decision. Zarif participated in the Iranian cabinet meeting on Tuesday, which was also attended by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In his Tuesday post on X, the former diplomat praised the new cabinet saying that it “reflected the honesty and courage” of Pezeshkian. Last week, the Iranian parliament granted a full vote of confidence to the members of the cabinet presented by Pezeshkian. Pezeshkian, who ran as a reformist candidate, won Iran’s run-off presidential vote on July 5, beating the ultraconservative rival Saeed Jalili. The vote was originally scheduled for 2025, but it was moved forward after former President Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter crash in May alongside several companions including then Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. Zarif was foreign minister in former President Hassan Rouhani’s cabinet from 2013 to 2021.
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