Mohammad-Reza Gharaei Ashtiani

Battles/wars

• 1979 Kurdish rebellion in Iran
• Iran-Iraq War
• 2024 Iranian strikes in Israel

Minister of DefenceAssumed office
25 August 2021PresidentEbrahim RaisiPreceded byAmir Hatami Personal detailsAlma materImam Ali Officers' Academy
AJA University of Command and Staff
Supreme National Defense University

Mohammad-Reza Gharaei Ashtiani (Persian: محمدرضا قرایی آشتیانی) is an Iranian military officer who serves as the current minister of defence in Iran.^[1] Ashtiani was sworn in on 25 August 2021, replacing Brigadier General Amir Hatami who held role since 2017.

Military career

Ashtiani was promoted to the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Islamic Republic of Iran (Artesh) on 2 July 2019, following a decree by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Ashtiani replaced Major General Ataollah Salehi. He was selected to be the Minister of Defense by President Ebrahim Raisi and then was approved for the position and took office on 25 August 2021.^{[citation needed]}

Defense Minister

Ashtiani’s selection for the position was favored by outgoing minister Amir Hatami who called Ashtiani the “best candidate” for position. Ashtiani said that he would prioritize exporting various defense products to other countries around the world.^{[citation needed]}

References

Government offices
Preceded by Amir Hatami	Minister of Defense 2021–present	Succeeded by Incumbent
Military offices
Preceded by Ataollah Salehi	Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces 2019–2021	Succeeded by Aziz Nasirzadeh
Preceded by Habib Baghaei	Second-in-Command of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army 2005–2008	Succeeded by Abdolrahim Mousavi
Preceded by Unknown	Second-in-Command of the Ground Force 1999–2005	Succeeded by Unknown