Mohammad Nahavandian
| محمد نهاوندیان Mohammad Nahavandian | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chief of Staff of the President of Iran | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 4 August 2013 | |
| President | Hassan Rouhani |
| Preceded by | Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei |
| President of the Chamber of Commerce Industries and Mines | |
| In office 1 July 2010 – 4 August 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Reza Behzadian |
| Succeeded by | Mohammad Sadeq Moffateh (Acting) |
| Deputy Secretary of Supreme National Security Council | |
| In office 15 August 2005 – 20 October 2007 | |
| President | Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |
| Preceded by | Hossein Mousavian |
| Succeeded by | Ali Bagheri |
| Deputy Minister of Commerce | |
| In office 4 June 1994 – 12 January 2002 | |
| Minister | Yahya Ale Eshaq Mohammad Shariatmadari |
| Preceded by | Masoud Movahedi |
| Succeeded by | Masoud Movahedi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 February 1954 Tehran, Iran |
| Political party | Islamic Coalition Party |
| Residence | Tehran, Iran New York, United States |
| Alma mater | George Washington University |
| Profession | Politician, Economist |
| Website | Official website |
Mohammad Nahavandian (Persian: محمد نهاوندیان, born 2 February 1954) is an Iranian American politician and economist and the chief of staff of the President of Iran. He was the president of Iran Chamber of Commerce Industries and Mines from 1 July 2010 until 4 August 2013 and also, the head of Iran's membership request commission to World Trade Organization. He was also the deputy secretary of Supreme National Security Council under Ali Larijani.
Early life and education
Nahavandian is the son of Jafar Nahavandian, a famous Iranian religious figure and founder of Hossienieh Zanjaniha. He was born on 2 February 1954 in Tehran. He graduated from Alavi Institute in 1976 with a degree in economics and then moved to United States for education at George Washington University. He left the United States and returned to Iran before Iranian Revolution. He was one of the closest people to the Morteza Motahari and Mohammad Javad Bahonar. He then founded Economic Council of Iran in 1980 but returned to the United States to continue his education. He received his Ph.D in economics in 1989 and founded Islamic Cooperation of the Americans. He returned to Iran after eight years in 1994.[1]
Career
Nahavandian became deputy minister of commerce, having been appointed by Yahya Ale Eshaq. After Mohammad Shariatmadari succeeded Ale Eshaq, he remained at his position. In 2002, he resigned from office to become Economic adviser to the President Mohammad Khatami.[2] He also became head of economic programs at IRIB in the same year. After Ali Larijani was appointed as the Secretary of Supreme National Security Council, he named Nahavandian as his deputy in economic affairs. He was also choice of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as the head of Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) in 2006 but he rejected it to continue his career at the Security Council. After the resignation of Larijani, he also do same.
In December 2007, he was elected as the deputy president of Iran Chamber of Commerce Industries and Mines. After resignation of long time president of the chamber Mohammad Reza Behzadian, Nahavandian was elected as his successor with 165 votes from representatives of cities and organizations and becomes president of the chamber.[3] He was one of the campaign members of Ali Akbar Velayati during 2013 presidential election but after the election of Hassan Rouhani, he was named as his economic adviser and head of economic commission for the transition affairs. It was reported that Nahavandian will become chief of staff of the president after the inauguration of Rouhani. After Rouhani took office as the President of Iran, he officially appointed Nahavandian for the position, effective from 4 August 2013.[4]
Controversies
He held the Permanent residence of the United States (Green Card) since 1990. In 2005, Financial Times reports that Nahavandian had traveled to the United States and meet with the officials to discuss about Iran's nuclear program. At that time, Nahavandian was deputy secretary of Supreme National Security Council. Ali Larijani later denied Nahavandian's private meet with the United States officials. Both Iran and United States' diplomats also denied the meeting. Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs published an official statement and called Nahavandian's travel to the United States personal and no communication between the two countries relations.
Works
- “New Horizons in Trade Policy-Making”, Commerce Publishing Co., Tehran, 2002
- “Tobacco Conflict, Study of Iran-British Economic Relations in 19th Century”, Fajr Publications, Tehran, 1978[5]
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mohammad Nahavandian. |
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Hossein Mousavian |
Deputy Secretary Supreme National Security Council 2005–2007 |
Succeeded by Ali Bagheri |
| Preceded by Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei |
Chief of Staff of the President of Iran 2013–present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Business positions | ||
| Preceded by Mohammad Reza Behzadian |
President of the Chamber of Commerce Industries and Mines 2010–2013 |
Succeeded by Mohammad Sadeq Moffateh Acting |
