After his resignation was rejected by the president, Mohammad Javad Zarif, the foreign minister of the Islamic Republic attended the welcoming ceremony for the prime minister of Armenia.

In his first reaction on his Instagram after the rejection of his resignation, the foreign minister of Iran thanked the Islamic Republic officials for their support.

On Wednesday, Rouhani wrote in response to his resignation: “Accepting this resignation is against national interests and I will not accept it.”

Rouhani stated that the foreign ministry is on the front line of facing the United States and wrote that he is aware of the pressures on the diplomatic apparatus.

Qasem Soleimani, the commander of IRGC also said on Wednesday that Zarif is responsible for the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic and he is always supported by the high-ranking officials of the regime.

He also added that there was no ill intention in the absence of the foreign minister during Bashar Assad’s visit with Iranian officials and it was just some mismanagement within the office of the president.

During his unannounced visit, Bashar Assad met with the leader of the Islamic Republic where Soleimani and Velayati where also present, and during his meeting with Rouhani, Soleimani and Vaezi were present but Zarif was absent.

In a message to a reporter Zarif mentioned those meetings as the reasons for his resignation, saying “with the photos of those meeting published, no one in the world will respect Zarif as the foreign minister of Iran any more.”