Iranian President Hassan Rouhani made the remarks at an Iftar banquet with university professors and doctors Tuesday night in Tehran, adding “universities are at the forefront of serving the community and the country and in no way should we look at universities and students through security lenses.”
"We should try to build trust in our engagement with the university students and academics," underlined Rouhani adding that his goernment is trying to create more free atmosphere in universities and restore the authority to students and professors as they are the most qualified to comment on interests of universities, students and future of sicence and technology.
“Some say if our professors make contact with professors in other countries, and if our technology gets in touch with the outside, some perils may threaten the safety of our country and as such, this connection must be severed, but one cannot shut the gates to the outside and still expect to have economic and scientific progress,” Rouhani said.
The President went on to highlight the opinions and demands of the people in running the country, saying “the 11th government has made every effort to allow our universities more space to breathe and act more independently and with more safety.”
“If we seek to maintain our independence and follow the path toward Resistance Economy, this cannot be made possible without science and universities,” President Rouhani said, adding “we cannot expect the universities to trust us if we do not put that same trust in them.”
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