Ali Akbar Velayati | |
---|---|
President of Expediency Discernment Council's Center for Strategic Research | |
Assumed office 30 October 2013 |
|
Appointed by | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
Preceded by | Hassan Rouhani |
Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
In office 15 December 1981 – 20 August 1997 |
|
President |
Ali Khamenei Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
Prime Minister | Mir-Hossein Mousavi |
Preceded by | Mir-Hossein Mousavi |
Succeeded by | Kamal Kharazi |
Member of Parliament | |
In office 28 May 1980 – 15 December 1981 |
|
Constituency | Tehran, Rey and Shemiranat |
Majority | 858,305 (52.5%) |
Personal details | |
Born |
Shemiranat County, Iran |
24 June 1945
Political party |
Islamic Association of Physicians of Iran Islamic Coalition Party |
Other political affiliations |
Islamic Republican Party (1979–1987) National Front (1961–1970s) |
Spouse(s) | Shirin Khoshnevisan (1980–2003, her death) Leyla Enayati (2007–present) |
Children | 6 |
Alma mater |
Tehran University of Medical Sciences Johns Hopkins University |
Awards | Order of Knowledge (1st class) |
Signature | |
Website | Official website |
Ali Akbar Velayati (Persian: علیاکبر ولایتی pronunciation ; born 24 June 1945) is an Iranian politician, physician and academic. He was the Minister of Foreign Affairs for more than sixteen years from 1981 to 1997 under Prime Minister Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Presidents Ali Khamenei and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. He is the first and only person that have held this position for more than ten years. He is currently head of Center for Strategic Research, the board of founders and the board of trustees of the Islamic Azad University. He was a candidate in 2013 presidential election and lost, coming fifth out of the six candidates garnering 2,268,753 votes, which was 6.18% of the votes.
Velayati was born in Rostamabad village in Shemiran, Tehran, on 24 June 1945. He was matriculated into Tehran University of medical sciences in 1964. Velayati finished his studies in pediatrics before moving to Johns Hopkins University for a fellowship in infectious diseases. In the meantime, Velayati taught at university and is an active member of such influential bodies as the Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution, Expediency Council and Islamic Encyclopedia Foundation. During the rule of Mohammad Reza Shah, Velayati was arrested by the intelligence service SAVAK when he was 17.