Manouchehr Mottaki (Persian: منوچهر متکی‎; born 12 May 1953) is an Iranian politician and diplomat. He was the Iranian minister of foreign affairs. Whilst technically appointed by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he is considered to be closer to more pragmatic conservative factions and during the 2005 presidential election, he was the campaign manager of Ali Larijani, the conservative candidate. He was also a presidential candidate in the 2013 presidential election, but withdrew before the polling began. It was rumored that his nomination was rejected by Guardian Council, which he denied.