Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani Biography

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was one of the great political leaders produced by Iran. Born in a family of farmers, Rafsanjani was rational in his thought since a very young age. Unlike his other contemporaries, Rafsanjani was a man who believed that Iran should maintain good relations with the West, especially the United States, and neighbouring countries. During his tenure, Rafsanjani tried making Iran a hub for international business activities by introducing various economic reforms. Though he wanted to bring a significant change in Iran, his ideas were not welcomed by all sections of the Iranian society. This also led to his temporary eviction from power, however, he soon resumed the office. Rafsanjani also played a great role in Iran’s nuclear development program. He later contradicted himself by stating that dangerous war weapons go against the principles of Islam. He repeatedly tried to establish good relations with America, and even went to the extent of saying that Iran’s nuclear development would never be a threat to the United States. However, these attempts didn’t make any impact on the equation between the two countries. Rafsanjani also penned a few books post his presidency, a famous one being the one on ‘Amir Kabir’, an Iranian political leader.