Iranian presidential hopeful welcomes Rafsanjani’s candidacy

TEHRAN,May 15(MNA) – Presidential hopeful Hassan Rohani welcomed Expediency Council Chairman Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani’s candidacy for Iran’s June 14 presidential election. “I should say that I am very happy that Mr. Hashemi registered for the election, and I welcome it, and I believe that his candidacy in the current situation is a kind of sacrifice,” Hassan Rohani, a centrist who formerly served as the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, said in an interview with the Mehr News Agency published on Wednesday. “I firmly believe that we should help the country’s situation return to that of good judgment and proper management, and Mr. Hashemi has this capability,” he said. On his possible withdrawal from candidacy in favor of Rafsanjani, Rohani said that it would take a while to be able to analyze the impact of Rafsanjani’s entry on the political climate and alignments. “We are witnessing changes in the field of candidates, but we should wait to see which candidates will be finally approved by the Guardian Council,” he said. “After the screening of the candidates’ qualifications and the announcement of the results by the Guardian Council, it will be possible to say who will stay, who will drop out, and who will withdraw in favor of another candidate,” he added.