Iran’s presidential candidates discuss economic sanctions and nuclear deal ahead of July 5 runoff

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranian presidential candidates on Tuesday discussed the impact of economic sanctions imposed on their country by the United States and other Western nations and presented their plans about reviving a nuclear deal with world powers.

It was the second, and last, live debate on state television pitting little-known reformist Masoud Pezeshkian and Saeed Jalili, a hard-line former nuclear negotiator, ahead of Friday’s runoff election aimed at choosing a successor for the late President Ebrahim Raisi, who died last month in a helicopter crash.

Pezeshkian said that sanctions imposed by the West have badly hurt Iran’s economy. He cited a 40% inflation over the past four years and the increasing poverty rates. “We live in a society in which many are begging on the streets,” he said.

Pezeshkian, a cardiac surgeon, said his administration would immediately work towards trying to get sanctions lifted and vowed to “repair” the economy. He also said he would find a solution to revive a nuclear deal with world powers by discussing the plan with the country’s parliament and finding possible alternatives. “No government in history has been able to flourish inside a cage,” he said, referring to the impact of...