Iranian scholar: nuclear deal key to domestic reforms
In an exclusive interview, Tehran University professor Zibakalam tells Al-Monitor that President Hassan Rouhani has correctly judged that resolving the nuclear crisis will give his administration the opportunity to pursue domestic reforms.
Professor Sadegh Zibakalam, a prominent Iranian political analyst, told Al-Monitor that solving the nuclear crisis is the most important goal of the new administration. He said that President Hassan Rouhani has correctly realized that if he can solve the nuclear crisis and come to an agreement with the P5+1 countries, he can gradually solve the domestic problems as well.
Zibakalam teaches at Tehran University and is one of the few figures with close ties to the Reformists, who can still appear on TV and criticize the government. He has also appeared as a guest on international TV channels such as the BBC and the Russian channel RT. He belongs to a generation of young revolutionaries who became government officials after the Islamic Revolution in 1979. However, he resigned from his position and went to England to continue his education. He then received his doctorate in political science from the University of Bradford and started teaching.
