Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's attempt to curb the influence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Iran's economy has already begun. A Financial Times report published Sept. 14 detailed the Rouhani government's crackdown on the IRGC's business empire over the past year. Attacking the entrenched interests of the IRGC is in line with Rouhani's wider mandate of stabilizing the economy and liberalizing parts of Iran's industrial sectors to attract foreign firms. Under Rouhani's predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the IRGC and affiliated businessmen were able to win a number of construction contracts, oil and natural gas contracts and other key economic spoils....
