But supporting Ahmadinejad turned out to be a costly decision for Khamenei – and for the Islamic Republic. Instead of aligning himself with Khamenei, as expected, Ahmadinejad began to promote a nationalist, anti-clerical agenda, effectively using Khamenei’s resources to challenge the supreme leader’s authority and to establish his own economic network and sphere of influence.
但事实证明支持内贾德让哈梅内伊和伊朗伊斯兰共和国付出了沉重的代价。内贾德不仅没有像预想的那样和哈梅内伊联手，反而开始推动民族主义的反教计划，有效地利用哈梅内伊的资源挑战这位最高领袖的权威，同时建立自己的势力范围和经济网络。