Iran President and Challenger Clash in Debate
source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/world/middleeast/04iran.html?hp
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TEHRAN — A moderate politician who is considered the strongest challenger to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran accused him on live television on Wednesday of undermining the nation’s interest by constantly questioning the Holocaust and by engaging in an adventurist foreign policy.
The sharp attacks by the candidate, Mir Hussein Moussavi, came during a fierce 90-minute debate with Mr. Ahmadinejad that was broadcast throughout Iran. The two candidates clashed repeatedly during the one-on-one debate, with each accusing the other of radicalism and undercutting the country’s interest.
Mr. Moussavi, a former prime minister whose moderate views have won him support from other reformers in Iran, including former President Mohammad Khatami, has positioned himself as the strongest challenger to Mr. Ahmadinejad. Support from the Islamic authorities for the president, who is a religious conservative, appears to have weakened, and he is now widely criticized for Iran’s economic malaise.
With the presidential election to be held June 12, Mr. Moussavi was on the offensive during the debate, which was broadcast by state-run television. At one point he accused Mr. Ahmadinejad of moving Iran toward “dictatorship.” At another, he said that the president’s foreign policy suffered from “adventurism, illusionism, exhibitionism, extremism and superficiality.”
He also took issue with Mr. Ahmadinejad’s constant questioning of the Holocaust, saying that it harmed the country’s standing with the rest of the world and undermined its dignity. “For the past four years you kept saying that the United States is collapsing,” Mr. Moussavi said. “You have said Israel is collapsing. France is collapsing.”
He added, “Your foreign policies have been based on such illusional perceptions.”
end of excerpt
Source: The New York Times
The sharp attacks by the candidate, Mir Hussein Moussavi, came during a fierce 90-minute debate with Mr. Ahmadinejad that was broadcast throughout Iran. The two candidates clashed repeatedly during the one-on-one debate, with each accusing the other of radicalism and undercutting the country’s interest.
Mr. Moussavi, a former prime minister whose moderate views have won him support from other reformers in Iran, including former President Mohammad Khatami, has positioned himself as the strongest challenger to Mr. Ahmadinejad. Support from the Islamic authorities for the president, who is a religious conservative, appears to have weakened, and he is now widely criticized for Iran’s economic malaise.
With the presidential election to be held June 12, Mr. Moussavi was on the offensive during the debate, which was broadcast by state-run television. At one point he accused Mr. Ahmadinejad of moving Iran toward “dictatorship.” At another, he said that the president’s foreign policy suffered from “adventurism, illusionism, exhibitionism, extremism and superficiality.”
He also took issue with Mr. Ahmadinejad’s constant questioning of the Holocaust, saying that it harmed the country’s standing with the rest of the world and undermined its dignity. “For the past four years you kept saying that the United States is collapsing,” Mr. Moussavi said. “You have said Israel is collapsing. France is collapsing.”
He added, “Your foreign policies have been based on such illusional perceptions.”
end of excerpt
Source: The New York Times
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