-The Leader in a meeting with Iranians from all walks of life
In a meeting with thousands of people from various provinces and from all walks of life on Monday, August 13, 2018, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei delivered some important remarks about the country’s economic conditions and the livelihood of Iranians, the US’ malevolence and its proposal for negotiations and the need for general unity between the people and officials. He reiterated, “Economic problems and their solutions are clear; there is no stalemate in the country and officials in all three branches of the governments must lift the problems from the shoulders of the people through effort, joint endeavor and use of the opinions of experts.”
Also regarding the issue of talks with the US, he stressed, “We will not engage in negotiations with the US due to precise reasoning, past experience and the plentiful harms of holding talks with a bullying and deceptive regime; and we will favorably weather this phase under the auspices of the unity and unanimity of the people and officials.”
In his remarks, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution pointed to the country’s economic and livelihood problems and the recent widespread hike in prices which has put some portion of the nation under pressure. He said, “Most of the economic experts and most of the officials agree that the reason for all these problems is not sanctions, but is a result of domestic issues and the manner of management and executive policy-making.”
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed, “I am not saying that sanctions do not have any effect; however, most of the recent economic problems are related to performances and if the performances are better, more prudent, timelier and stronger, sanctions will not have a great impact and we can resist them.”
He pointed to the recent fluctuations in the exchange rates for foreign currencies and in gold coin prices as well as the devaluation of the national currency, adding, “Concerning the issues of forex and gold coins, it was said that some 18 million dollars of the country’s existing foreign currency was, due to imprudence and at a time when we have problems procuring foreign currency, provided to some people and some abused that. These cases are management problems and have nothing to do with sanctions.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution reiterated, “When foreign currency or gold coins are wrongly distributed or divided, the current problems arise because there are two sides to this issue: on the one side is the person who takes, and on the other the person who gives. Most of the people are after the person who has received the foreign currency or gold coins whereas a huge portion of the blame lies with the individual who has provided the foreign currency or gold coins with imprudence and the recent measures of the Judiciary is in fact aimed at dealing with people who paved the ground for these issues and a drop in the value of the national currency through violation and a great mistake.”
He pointed to enemies lying in wait to take advantage of these mistakes and instances of imprudence, adding, “For various reasons, we have no shortage of malevolent and wicked enemies; they are lying in ambush to perch on the wound like a fly and instill the notion of the ineffectiveness of the Establishment and the existence of a dead end in the country by taking advantage of the mistakes of some people, so that people are disheartened.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed, “There is no stalemate in the country, because the problems of the county are clear and there is a known solution to all of them and officials only have to gird up their loins.”
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to the assorted suggestions and missives of the revolutionary, faithful and bright youths to resolve the issues, saying, “Recently, some economic experts who are not against the administration and some of whom are famous, wrote a letter out of compassion to the respected president and while enumerating some of the structural and existing economic problems, offered the solutions and most of these solutions were correct.”
He stressed that most of these solutions had been declared in annual mottoes and general policies, adding, “Therefore, the economic woes of the country have solutions, and the enemy and some of its followers inside the country and in media cannot simply launch malicious propaganda suggesting the country has come to a dead end and that there is no way but to turn to such-and-such devil or the Great Satan.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution reiterated, “Officials have begun applying some of these solutions; however, they should carry them out more seriously and I have stated this issue in private meetings with the heads of the three branches of the government and the country’s officials and they are following up on these issues as much as they can.”
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed that we have no shortage of good, accomplished and young human resources in the country, saying, “The officials must choose good colleagues for themselves.”
He said the huge cash flow is one of the economic problems of the country and a result of wrong policies, adding, “As I told the officials on Eid al-Fitr, this cash flow must be directed toward production and industrial, agricultural and housing sectors and if this is done, the cash flow, which is a threat today, will turn into an opportunity.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed that he has always supported the administrations will also support this administration, reiterating, “I once more strongly emphasize to administration officials to find the ways to push the liquidity toward production through intelligence, planning and consultation with wise people.”
Ayatollah Khamenei said, “Some say that the reason for the current market and business problems is that because economic agents were aware of the time of the beginning of the sanctions, i.e. August 6 and November 4, they carried out some measures; now the question is if economic agents were aware and took some actions, administrative officials should also have further prepared themselves to counter the sanctions.”
He added, “Indeed, it is still not too late and necessary decisions and bids to counter the evil decision of the enemy can be adopted and if someone says it is too late and impossible, they are either fools or have made an ignorant remark.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed, “Anyone who declares we have hit a dead end is either a fool or their remark is traitorous.”
Continuing on the topic of economic issues and woes, Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to the subject of corruption and the need to country it, saying, “The recent letter by Judiciary Chief [Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani] is an important and positive step toward fighting corruption and the corrupt.”
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to his letter 17 years ago to the heads of the three branches of the government for fighting corruption, adding, “Corruption is a seven-headed dragon which must be fully and seriously countered; furthermore, when corruption and the corrupt are fought, there will certainly be growls and grumbles from one corner or another.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed, “The explicit statement of this issue is for this reason that everyone must know that the intent of the Establishment to deal with the corrupt seriously and without reservation.”
He added, “Regarding corruption, some speak in a way that apparently the entire Establishment is corrupt and they claim the corruption is systemic and widespread, whereas this is not the case and we have many upright and faithful managers in the country and speaking in such a manner is an injustice to these people and an injustice to the Islamic Establishment.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed that in the Islamic Establishment even a few corrupt individuals is too many and they must be firmly countered, saying, “Going to extremes is wrong. Some people are careless in their remarks and writings. You cannot extend corruption in some apparatuses and among some people to the entire country.”
Concluding this part of his speech, Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated, “The solutions to the country’s economic woes, whether structural or short-term solutions are clear and the goal of requesting a joint meeting between the heads of the three branches is the joint finding of solutions by using the help of sincere experts and this measure is being undertaken.”
He added, “Monitoring apparatuses affiliated to intelligence services, the Judiciary and Parliament must strongly and vigilantly be present on the scene and all of the faithful people must play a role in this regard with a sense of duty.”
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed that the executive and legislative branches must block all the paths to corruption, saying, “If on the issues of foreign currency and gold coins, necessary monitoring, care and follow-up had been carried out, the paths to corruption would have been shut.”
He also urged all the people to remain vigilant and act with insight against the enemy provocations, adding, “The Iranian nation has always had insight in the battle against the enemy and everyone must know that the enemy seeks to take advantage of the weak points against the people themselves.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution strongly urged promotional apparatuses, whether the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the press, and websites in cyberspace to take care not to create despair in the society, saying, “There is no problem with criticism; however, people should not be disheartened. Sometimes, such things are said in a newspaper or on a radio or television program that make it seem that all the doors are closed; whereas this is not the case.”
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed, “The Iranian nation and Islamic Establishment will see off this stage, which is easier than the previous stages, just as it has so far left behind tough phases.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution said the US officials have grown more brazen and ruder over the past few months, reiterating, “They did not observe political and diplomatic decorum in their remarks in the past, either; however, the current US regime officials speak to the world in such an impudent, shameless and rude manner that it seems they have been stripped of all decency.”
Ayatollah Khamenei recalled two counts of Saudi crimes in Yemen over the past week, namely the bombardment of a hospital and an attack on a vehicle carrying Yemeni children and massacring dozens of innocent and defenseless kids, adding, “The conscience of the world was troubled by these crimes and governments, even if ceremonially, expressed some regret; however, instead of condemning these atrocities, the Americans shamelessly spoke of their strategic ties with the Saudis and gave rise to the question, ‘Are American officials really human beings?’”
He described as another unprecedented crime the separation of about 2,000 children from their families and caging them under the pretext of being migrants, adding, “The distressing point is that the Americans are carrying out such measures with no shame or remorse before they eyes of the world public.”
The Leader of the Revolution pointed to the ruse remarks of US regime officials about sanctions, war and negotiations, saying, “I emphasize that there will be no war and we will not negotiate.”
Ayatollah Khamenei added, “Of course, they will not explicitly raise the issue of war, but seek to create and hype up the ‘specter of war’ through intimation and allusion to frighten the Iranian nation or cowards.”
On the same issue, he reiterated, “No war will break out, because as in the past, we will never initiate a war and the Americans will not start the attack either, because they know that it will end against them 100 percent since the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation have proven that they will deal a heavier blow to any aggressor.”
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to the disgraceful and scandalous failure of the Americans in the 1980 attack in the Tabas Desert, adding, “The may not understand many things, but they probably understand this much to imagine and comprehend the result of aggression against Iran.”
Continuing to elaborate on US designs against the Islamic Republic and Iranian nation, the Leader of the Revolution turned to the issue of the proposal for negotiations, adding, “Of course, on this issue, they are acting according to a primitive and worthless game and approach; one person says no preconditions, the other sets preconditions.”
Ayatollah Khamenei said, “Contrary to the assumption of some inside the country, the request of the Americans for talks is not a new issue and has been repeated several times over the past 40 years but faced Iran’s negative response. Even US president at the time, [Ronald] Reagan, who was stronger than the current ones, in the case known as McFarlane, secretly sent him to Tehran for talks but he returned with no achievement after 24 hours.”
Elaborating on Iran’s arguments for refusing negotiations with the Americans, the Leader of the Revolution said, “They have a special formula for negotiations, which must be understood and then this question must be answered: ‘Will any sane person engage in negotiations with this formula in place?’”
He said the principle of negotiations in diplomatic conventions is “give and take,” reiterating, “In all negotiations, the Americans, relying on their political, propaganda and financial power, seek to shatter any resistance against the realization of their objectives.”
Describing the American-style negotiations formula, Ayatollah Khamenei added, “Firstly, they precisely determine the main objectives; indeed, they do not declare these goals in their entirety, but in the course of the talks, they pursue all of the objectives through bargaining and reneging. The second point is that the Americans will not back down a step from these main objectives.”
He added, “Throughout the negotiations, the Americans only make promises with apparently reassuring terms, but they seek immediate concessions from the opposite side and will not accept pledges.”
Referring to the 2015 nuclear agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Leader of the Revolution reiterated, “We experienced this reality in the JCPOA, just as the Americans have adopted the same approach in negotiations with North Korea.”
He reiterated, “Wherever in talks the opposite side refuses to make immediate concessions, the Americans launch such propaganda and media uproar in the world that the other side backs down and grows passive.”
Explaining the final point of the Americans’ negotiations formula, Ayatollah Khamenei added, “Also after negotiations, the Americans easily renege on their promises and do not fulfill them.”
رAfter stating this fact, the Leader of the Revolution raised one basic question, “Why should we sit round the negotiations table with a bullying and cheating regime which negotiates like this?”
Ayatollah Khamenei described the JCPOA as the clear example of the outcome of talks with the US in which some of the specified red lines were obviously not observed.
He reiterated, “Considering the US formula in negotiations, any government in the world which engages in talks with them will face problems, unless its orientation is aligned with Washington’s. Of course, the current US government even bullies the Europeans.”
Sort of summing up this part of his remarks, the Leader of the Revolution added, “We can only enter into the dangerous game of negotiations with the US when we achieve our intended power in economic, political and cultural terms and its pressures and demagoguery would fail to affect us, but presently talks will certainly end to our disadvantage and is prohibited.”
Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated, “The preeminent late Imam [Khomeini] had also forbidden talks with the US until this regime mends its ways and we also emphasize this point.”
He added, “Even if on the off chance we were to hold talks with the Americans, we would certainly not enter into talks with the current administration.”
In an important point to all politicians, diplomats, motivated youths, students majoring in politics and activists in the field of politics, Ayatollah Khamenei recalled, “Negotiations with the bullying and demanding US regime is not a means for removing or reducing their hostility, but is giving the US a tool so that it can more extremely and greatly enact is enmity and pursue its objectives.”
The Leader of the Revolution said the focus of the Great Satan on economic war is a result of the despair from military, political, security and even cultural wars, adding, “The youthful and blessed germination of the Revolution and the failure of the riots and security incidents of 2009 show the defeat and despair of the enemy in these arenas.”
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed, “Of course, with the grace of God and the vigilance of the people and officials, the US will also be defeated in the economic war.”
He pointed to the ploy and deceit of the enemies in speaking to the Iranian people, saying, “One mentally retarded person tells the Iranian nation that your government is spending your money in Syria, whereas his boss has admitted that the US has spent 7 trillion dollars in the region and gained nothing.”
The Leader of the Revolution added, “We helped two friendly countries, namely Iraq and Syria, against US and Saudi threats and such assistances are a kind of exchange among friendly governments.”
Ayatollah Khamenei said the generation of skepticism in public minds toward the stances of the Establishment is one of the clear goals of the enemies of the Iranian nation, adding, “
He stated some news and intelligence from the behind the scenes of US, Saudi and Zionist measures, adding, “To create unrest in the [Iranian calendar month of] Dey last year (December 22, 2017 – January 20, 2017), they had worked several years, but the nation entered the fray with commendable vigilance and laid waste to the years of preparations.”
The Leader of the Revolution added, “The enemies then pinned their hopes on [the current Iranian calendar] year of 1397 (March 21, 2018 – March 20, 2019] and some Americans said you will hear some news from Iran in six months. The meant the incidents of [the Iranian calendar month of] Mordad (July 23, 2018 – August 22, 2018) which despite the huge financial and political support by the enemies turned out so limited.”
Ayatollah Khamenei stressed, “The people are smart and insightful; of course, livelihood and economic problems have troubled many of them, but this nation will not yield to the demands of the CIA in the US and such-and-such disgraced regime.”
The Leader of the Revolution stressed, “Just as the enemy has been weak, incapable and defeated so far, it will also fail in the future provided that we all remain vigilant and fulfill our responsibilities by avoiding despair.”
He added, “Some, in the name of being supporters of the weak and wanting to fix the situation, without being aware of it themselves are speaking and acting within the framework of the enemy’s plot.”
Ayatollah Khamenei added, “Those who say that the administration must be unseated are playing a role in the enemy’s plan. The administration must stay in office and strongly carry out its responsibilities in resolving the problems.”
The Leader of the Revolution pointed to the rights and responsibilities of the administration and Majlis, adding, “Both branches, while having its own rights, must safeguard the dignity of the other side and the three branches must remove the problems before the nation through synergy.”
At the end of his speech, he pointed to the remarks of Imam Khomeini about the mighty hand of God being on the head of Iranian nation and Islamic Establishment, adding, “We too sense this powerful hand of God; a strength that is manifest in the faith of the nation.”
At the beginning of his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to the newly-arrived month of Zulhijja, the month of prayers, supplication and recourse to the divine court and said the feature of faith and reliance on God is the generation of hope, self-confidence and invincibility. He reiterated, “By possessing this faith, the Iranian nation has been mightily standing tall against the arrogant world powers for 40 years and this strength must increase daily.”
