Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi meeting Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. January 19, 2022
An Iranian conservative journalist has called for Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian to step down over President Ebrahim Raisi’s treatment during his recent Russia visit.
Mohammad Mohajeri tweeted Monday that if he was in Amir-Abdollahian’s shoes he would resign, as the foreign minister had failed to maintain diplomatic protocols during the president’s “disgraceful trip to Russia.”
Many reformist pundits as well social media users criticized various aspects of Raisi’s trip, but such criticisms are rare from conservatives.
Mohajeri earlier slammed the president’s media team for promoting a photograph of Raisi praying in the Kremlin. Some principlists and Friday prayer leaders had eulogized an act of great significancegiven the building’s long association with atheistic Communism.
Among Twitterati taking offence, some took umbrage at Putin not welcoming Raisi at the airport, some at Putin not leaving his chair to greet the Iranian president at their meeting, some at the Russian president’s alleged impoliteness in chewing gum while Raisi spoke.
Some even interpreted the large table between the two presidents at the meeting as intentionally implying "distance," and pointed out that the two countries’ flags were nowhere to be seen. Fars news website, affiliated with the IRGC, by contrast suggested Putin was so impressed with Raisi that he became fidgety and tidied his tie to calm down.