The chairman of the Expediency Council criticized the opponents of the ongoing negotiations between Iran and the major powers on a final nuclear deal for their attempts to undermine government's efforts aiming to resolve the long-running nuclear dispute with the West.
"There should be an atmosphere of constructive criticism; the atmosphere of smear campaigns is never constructive and brings about hostility and hatred, and discourages the targeted person," Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said, adding, "This will be to the detriment of the whole society," IRNA reported .
He made the remarks in a speech at a conference entitled "Pattern of Sustainable and Balanced Regional Development" held at the interior ministry building in Tehran on Tuesday.
Pointing to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's trip to the US to address Congress on Iran's nuclear talks, Rafsanjani said the opponents threaten the government to "divulge secrets", the same thing that Netanyahu does to the US administration.
Addressing the critics, the cleric described the negotiating team as "trustable," noting that members of the other side's team are not "naive", but rather "wicked" and "dexterous".
"The platform of the Majlis is available for them (opponents) to say whatever they wish," he said, cautioning that "thousands or millions of audiences may hear their (remarks) on the radio and believe them. Such remarks hinder the (government's) work."
Noting that such issues are unprecedented in the country, he said expressing opposing views is justifiable, but not through "obstruction", especially under the current conditions.
Lamenting that the internal pressure on the government is "greater" than the one that comes from outside the country, Rafsanjani said, "If they have a logical point to make, they can and should propose it and expect an answer."
