Zarif, Zanganeh, Hemmati, at front line of fighting US

He made the remarks Tuesday in a meeting with officials of Central Bank of Iran (CBI) in Tehran.

“Today, Foreign Ministry, CBI and Oil Ministry are at the front line of this fight. I want to appreciate the resistance of Mr. Zarif, Mr. Hemmati, and Mr. Zanganeh. These are the forces fighting in the front line. Of course, the rest of economic ministries are on the second line of defense,” he said.

Rouhani's appreciation for Zarif came as the top diplomat announced his resignation from his post as Iran's foreign minister on Monday.

The president went on to say that Iran has had many great achievements despite US sanctions and economic pressures.

“In general, we should not have had a positive trade balance in times of sanctions, but today, this balance is desirable; our non-oil exports are worth $40 billion while the imports are at $38.5 billion. So our balance is +$1.5 billion.”

Rouhani also touched upon yesterday’s visit of Syrian President Bashar Assad to Tehran, saying his trip was aimed at voicing appreciation for the Iranian government and nation for supporting Damascus.

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