TEHRAN – Presidential chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi on Wednesday dismissed rumors that Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri wants to leave the government, saying such an issue “has never come up”.

“Mr. Janangiri has played a significant role in both [4-year] terms of President Rouhani,” Vaezi told reporters in Tehran after a cabinet meeting. “He is the second-in-command in the administration and all ministers and members of the administration are required to coordinate with him.”

“Paying attention to such rumors is to the benefit of the Americans and the other countries which try to show that the Islamic Republic is incompetent,” he added.

MH/PA