Iran is one of the world's oldest continuous major civilizations, with historical and urban settlements dating back to 4000 BCE. Throughout history, Iran has been of geostrategic importance because of its central location in Eurasia. Iran is a founding member of the UN, NAM, OIC, OPEC, ECO, and seeks to join the SCO. The political system of Iran, based on the 1979 Constitution, comprises several intricately connected governing bodies. The highest state authority is the Supreme Leader, currently Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As a a regional power. Iran occupies an important position in international energy security and world economy due to its large reserves of petroleum and natural gas. The country is known for its independent stances in the global arena.
The name Iran is a cognate of Aryan, and literally means "Land of the Aryans"."Land of Kindness" (?????? ???) is used as an alternative name for Iran in Persian literature and Iranian media.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born October 28, 1956) is the sixth and current President of the Islamic Republic of Iran. He became president on 6 August 2005 after winning the 2005 presidential election by popular vote. Before becoming president, he was the Mayor of Tehran. He is the highest directly elected official in the country, but, according to Article 113 of Constitution of Iran, he has less total power than the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Iran and has the final word in all aspects of foreign and domestic policies.