Her late father was a pillar of the Islamic republic. But for Faezeh Hashemi Rafsanjani, the survival of the system in Iran that her family helped create requires negotiations with the US president Donald Trump and the kind of domestic reforms the regime has avoided in its near 40-year rule. “We should not act passively and [instead] enter into negotiations with the US soon . . . before the situation gets worse,” said Ms Hashemi, 56, an outspoken reform-minded politician. “We have no other choice . . . Belated negotiations could happen under more pressure.”
She went on: “Having no relations with the US was not right from the beginning . . . The Islamic republic should resolve its problems with the US . . . [because] having no ties with the superpower is costly for us.” Recommended Analysis Iran nuclear deal Iran feels sting of US sanctions once more The theocratic regime, established in 1979 by conservative clerics, including Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, is already under huge stress.
The breakdown of the nuclear deal with the US, a plunging currency and high youth unemployment have contributed to rising unrest. Almost daily, there are reports of protests around the country. “I do not see the danger of collapse [right now] but the country can go to that direction if solutions are not found,” Ms Hashemi said. “Now, the crisis has reached a climax . . . in all aspects . . . while the state pretends it is normal.”