State TV cuts short Iran negotiator interview, drawing ire
Iranian state television on Tuesday cut short the broadcast of an interview with Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran's top negotiator in talks with the United States, drawing criticism from his team.
"This discussion was delivered to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) more than 2 hours before the broadcast time; but unfortunately, the broadcast of this discussion was stopped in the middle of it," said a statement by the parliament media centre on Wednesday.
"This is despite the fact that this discussion was recorded and the least duty of the IRIB officials was to coordinate it with the parliament's media centre if they decided not to broadcast part of the discussion contrary to procedures," the statement added.
The state broadcaster argued that the interview was cut into two parts and the second section will air on Wednesday night.
The parliamentary media centre noted that the parts that were cut included the topics of U.N. nuclear watchdog inspections, the country's frozen assets, and a 300-billion-dollar reconstruction credit.
Many hardliners, including conservative lawmakers and media personalities, have criticised the deal signed between Tehran and Washington to end the regional conflict.
Last month, a state TV presenter called for the closure of Tehran's Mehrabad Airport so that the Iranian negotiation team would not be able to travel to Switzerland to talk with the U.S. delegation.
The critics claim that Iran has hastily reopened the Strait of Hormuz -- letting oil flow through the strategic waterway -- without gaining any tangible benefits from the Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S.
During the state TV interview on Tuesday, Ghalibaf argued that the memorandum has enabled Iran to sell its oil as the U.S. removed its own blockade of the Strait.
"From the day the blockade was lifted until today, we have exported more than 40 million barrels of oil," he said, adding that "by contrast, during the previous 50 to nearly 60 days, we were genuinely unable to export even a single barrel of oil."
Source: Agence France Presse
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