Iran’s forex reserves over $100b: Ahmadinejad

TEHRAN,July 6(MNA) – Outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Iran has over $100 billion in foreign currency reserves. “Our (foreign currency) reserves are over $100 billion, of course if we include gold reserves,” Ahmadinejad said in a televised interview broadcast live on Iranian television late on Thursday. “This is a gift from the current administration to the next administrations,” added Ahmadinejad, who will hand over the presidency to Hassan Rohani in August. Defending his performance during his two consecutive four-year terms in office in all areas, he said that the enemies were seeking to cripple the country’s economy through exerting pressure but failed in their attempts. Pressure was exerted on the government from inside the country as well, Ahmadinejad said, without elaborating. He also said that foreign investment in Iran had increased during his presidency. In addition, Ahmadinejad said that his administration’s efforts to promote freedom of press should not be downplayed, noting, “We never attempted to establish a pro-government newspaper.”