Would the next Iranian president be a savior or a terminator of the nuclear deal? Press TV investigates

Yusef Jalali

Press TV, Tehran

On Saturday, the seven presidential candidates in Iran faced off in the first out of three live debates, to present their plans regarding a single issue, the economy.

As the three hour debate was more pugnacious and less informative, reporters waited outside the studio to extract more information about the candidates' economic plans.

It's no surprise that economy was the topic for the first debate, since the outgoing administration is under fire for dismal handling of the country's economy, leading to snowballing prices and persisting unemployment. Iran's economy is tied to oil revenues.

This as the country cannot sell its crude in the global market, as US sanctions try to pull the plug on Iran's strategic sector. That's why I asked some of the candidates on their plans to regain the country's foothold in the global oil market.

Some of the contenders blamed the persisting economic crisis in Iran on President Rouhani's move to put all his eggs in the basket of the ailing nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. I asked two candidates the same question.

Would you pursue the same course regarding the nuclear accord or would you try other ways to revive Iran's economy? While the first debate offered an opportunity for each of the candidates to try to stand out and make the best impression on voters, it also gave a chance to the public to weigh up all the choices in one go.

The second and third debates are scheduled for Tuesday and Saturday respectively, which will be themed with cultural and political issues.

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