Iran’s Revolutionary Guards stay up in the face of reform

At the last minute, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani canceled a two-day working visit to Austria that was set to begin on a certain Wednesday in March, to the surprise of Iranian and Austrian observers. Rouhani’s trip was intended to help Iran work out economic deals with Austria, part of an effort to bolster Iran’s economic relations with Europe and gain the foreign investment that Iran’s post-sanctions economy needs. During his first European state visit in February, Rouhani struck far more substantial investment deals with Italy and France than could be expected in Austria.

The Rouhani administration explained that the trip would be rescheduled for “a more appropriate time,” citing security concerns as the cause for the sudden cancellation. Planned protests in Vienna by Iranian dissidents, which the Austrian authorities refused to stop despite the Iranian government’s demands, may also have contributed to the decision to cancel. But whatever reasons the administration gives for the trip’s cancellation, major components of Iranian society — particularly the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — oppose opening up Iran more fully and too swiftly to international trade and investment.