Statements in Meeting with the People of Azerbaijan

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

First of all, I welcome all dear brothers and sisters who have traveled this long road and today have illuminated our Hosseiniye (Hussainiyah) with your presence, your sincerity, and the spirituality that, thanks be to God, is widespread among the dear people of Azerbaijan and Tabriz. I thank you, especially the dear families of martyrs and veterans, respected scholars, and esteemed officials. Truly, the twenty-ninth of Bahman (February 18) each year is a blessed day for us. The fact that we have the opportunity to meet a group of dear youth, the dear people, the valiant people, the faithful people, and those who have been tested throughout the long history of our country on such a day in this Hosseiniye brings me great joy, and I consider this day a truly blessed day. Thanks be to God, this gathering is vibrant, lively, and meaningful; as you expressed in this beautiful song, "Ready youth, free youth"; I truly affirm this. There was a phrase in your song that said, "The devil cannot reach us"; this is indeed true, without a doubt. What one recalls from the history of Azerbaijan and Tabriz and the various events and strange ups and downs confirms and strengthens this meaning. I sincerely thank Mr. Shabestari; his presence is a blessing for Tabriz, a grace; and certainly, the presence of a committed, insightful, and appreciative cleric is an opportunity for any city, especially for a city like Tabriz and a province like Azerbaijan. We hope that this opportunity can be utilized, God willing.

I have spoken a lot about the virtues of Azerbaijan and Tabriz, and I truly believe in them from the bottom of my heart. I just want to say that the people of Azerbaijan and Tabriz have shown that they are both pioneers and timely, they act at the right moment, they are brave and courageous, and they do not fear difficulties; they are, in the truest sense of the word, faithful. These are facts; anyone familiar with the history of Azerbaijan will confirm them; whether in the constitutional movement of Iran, or before that in the tobacco boycott and the struggle against the British company, or afterwards in the national movement and the events following the 20th decade - that is, the years 30 and 31 - and in the events of the Islamic movement and the victory of the Islamic Revolution, in all these events, when we look, Azerbaijan and Tabriz acted timely, they entered the field earlier than others and were pioneers, they showed courage and bravery, and in the truest sense of the word, both young and old, men and women, made Islamic faith and religious belief their criteria. After the victory of the Revolution until today, it has been the same; during the eight years of sacred defense, that glorious Ashura brigade, those great and spiritual commanders like martyr Bakri and others, and then other events until today. The ninth of Dey (December 30) in 2009 was the ninth of Dey everywhere in the country, but in Tabriz, it was the eighth of Dey; these have meaning, these are indicative, they are signs. We do not mention these to please you; we mention them to show that this part of our country has these immense capacities. And this system, this Revolution has a long way ahead; all these characteristics can be useful in traversing this long path.

The presence of the people on the twenty-ninth of Bahman in 1978 was similar to the actions of Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) and Lady Zainab (peace be upon her) who did not allow the event of Ashura to be forgotten. The people of Tabriz did not allow this time to be forgotten; otherwise, it was supposed that the massacre in Qom and the presence of the people and everything would be forgotten, but the people of Tabriz did not allow it. I do not forget those days when news came that the tyrannical regime sent its prominent military figures to Tabriz to prevent the presence of the people, but the people created the twenty-ninth of Bahman; and until today, this day is alive. The reason I insist on meeting with you on this day is due to the importance of this day.

The work is in the hands of the people, the scene is in the hands of the people, the initiative is in the hands of the people; this was the art of the Imam; this was the art of the Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified); he handed the scene over to the owners of the work; because the country has owners. In the era of tyranny, they said the country has an owner; who is the owner of the country? The king; while he was a parasite and a burden in the country, not the owner of the country; the owners of the country are the people; yes, the country has owners; who is the owner of the country? The people. When the work is entrusted to the people themselves - who are the owners of the country, the owners of the future - then the work will be organized. The management of officials at any time in the Islamic Republic must be such that work is entrusted to the people with planning, consideration of all subtleties and details; then the work will progress. From the beginning of the Revolution until today, whenever we entrusted any work to the people, that work has progressed; whenever we restricted it to officials and leaders and the like, the work has stagnated. We do not say that it has always stagnated, but often it has either stagnated or slowed down; if it has not stagnated, it has progressed slowly. However, when the work is in the hands of the people, they carry it out well.

This is not specific to us; I should also mention that this is not specific to us Iranians. In any place where work is entrusted to the people and the people have a goal - not aimless people, people lost in personal daily matters, caught up in mundane affairs - any kind of work, the hardest tasks, military tasks, security tasks, when the work is in the hands of the people, the scene is entrusted to the people, it will progress. Look now, in less than ten years, the resistance of Lebanon has overcome the Zionist army several times; first, the resistance of Lebanon, then the resistance of Palestine. The resistance of Lebanon first expelled the Zionists from southern Lebanon; then in the 33-day war, it rubbed the noses of the Zionists in the dirt. America helped the Zionists, internal traitors helped, but the resistance force - which was a popular force, was faithful, had a goal, understood what it was doing - was able to drive all of them out of the arena. Recently, the blow that the resistance force dealt to the Zionist army, which is still fresh, is among the things that have not been forgotten. The same goes for the Palestinian resistance; in the 22-day war, in the 8-day war, in the 51-day war last Ramadan in the past summer - the very summer that just passed - a group of less capable, less armed people in a small area were able to do this; because the people were committed, because the people were supportive, the Palestinian resistance was able to humiliate the Zionist force and force it to accept a ceasefire. You have observed the recent events in Iraq; those who were incited by America and the Zionists and others came to the gates of Baghdad; the popular Mujahid forces of Iraq, in support of the army of that country, were able to deal this blow to the forces known as ISIS. The same goes for Syria; the popular forces went to help their army. This is how the people are; wherever the scene is entrusted to the people, the motivations of the people, the diverse and numerous popular forces will advance the work. One of the signs of this is the twenty-second of Bahman (February 11).

I truly find myself inadequate to express my gratitude to our dear people, to the great nation of Iran, and to describe this year's presence in the events of the twenty-second of Bahman; in the precise reports that have been given to me, which are accurate, in most, nearly all provincial centers - now there were marches in a thousand cities; as calculated, in most, nearly all provincial centers - the population this year was greater than last year; in most, nearly all! In cities, people marched in the cold, snow, and rain; in places like Ahvaz, people marched in a dust storm; is this a joke? 36 years have passed since the Revolution, where in the world is the anniversary of a revolution celebrated by the people with such grandeur and magnificence? This is because the work is in the hands of the people. The view of the Revolution and the system regarding the twenty-second of Bahman and the commemoration of the Revolution is directed towards the people; the work is entrusted to the people, and this is how the people move. This is a general rule. In every issue, from the small and large matters of the country where we had popular presence, we have observed this miracle.

Today, I want to speak a little about the economy; the economy of the country. For several years, at the beginning of each year, I have emphasized and focused on economic issues; this country is a large country, vast, populous; the domestic market of this country is a market of over seventy million, these are very significant, very grand. Look at our capabilities and potentials, what our human capabilities are - the vast number of young people in this country: skilled, educated, motivated, enthusiastic, ready to work - what natural resources this country has, but at the same time, we have economic problems; where is the problem? What is the solution? What should be done?

Let me tell you this: since the end of the war, that is, since 1988 when the eight years of sacred defense ended, there has been a general planning by the arrogant powers to prevent the Islamic Iran from becoming an influential economic power in the region; they tried, they worked on this. Well, when the war ended, we started planning for economic issues and advancements; we were busy planning; they realized that if they did not obstruct Iran, if they did not interfere, if they did not cause trouble, the Islamic Iran, with its capabilities - which at that time the shadow of the noble existence of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) was still over us and his blessed life continued - relying on Islam, relying on the people, would become a regional economic hub and would influence the regional and international economy, [therefore] plans were made to prevent this. These are related to nuclear issues; before the nuclear issues - nuclear issues have come up for about ten or twelve years; these are related to before the nuclear issues - related to the years 1988 and 1989 and those years; our enemies started their efforts from that day. Those who are informed know that the plans of the West, mainly America, began to circumvent Iran: in oil and gas transmission lines, to bypass Iran; in main air, land, and sea routes, to bypass Iran; in the transmission lines of information technology and communications, to bypass Iran; a kind of silent sanction; every significant economic activity that Iran wants to undertake, scare the parties away. These are events that have occurred in this country. Claimants and uninformed individuals should not come and speak and think that no one has done anything; no, a lot of effort has been made. The enemy had a plan in this regard, and it has carried out its plan step by step until today. What you observe is the outcome of the internal movements of the country and the enmity of the enemies. The enemy should not be forgotten. In the economic sphere, the enemy has truly planned; in some places, they explicitly entered the field, in some places they entered without explicitness, but those who are informed were aware, they understood what the enemy was doing. Who is the enemy? America and several European countries that follow America. These are not from today.

Well, what is the remedy? It is clear; the enemy is being hostile; do we expect anything from the enemy? No. We cannot expect anything from the enemy; we cannot complain to the enemy. Do we complain to America? Absolutely not; complaints are made to friends; well, the nature of the enemy is to be hostile; what is the remedy? The remedy is that a nation should make an effort within itself and do something so that the enemy's blow, which is certain, does not have an effect or has a minimal effect; that is the remedy. My dear ones, youth! Pay attention to these.

There have been two major problems in our economy: one is that our economy is oil-dependent; the other is that our economy is state-controlled; these are two major problems. Our economy is oil-dependent; what does this mean? It means we extract oil, which is our lasting capital and has the potential for several times value-added, from underground, sell it raw to the world, take the money and spend it on the current affairs of the country; there is no greater loss than this. This is how an oil-dependent economy works. Well, oil can be converted into products. I suspect - some scientific insights confirm this - perhaps; the oil that we convert into gasoline, diesel, and kerosene and use in this way, can create value-added up to a hundred times by producing products that humanity has not yet produced; we are oblivious to these; we extract crude oil from the wells and sell this reserve - this reserve that is not produced again underground; it is finite; it cannot be replaced; no, when we extract it, it is gone; oil is like this, gas is like this - we sell it and spend the money on the current affairs of the country; there is truly nothing worse than this; this is part of the cursed legacy of the tyrannical regime and the previous regime. There is an easy way to make money, and some officials over time have preferred to use this easy money. This is one problem.

The second problem; we said the economy is state-controlled. This is one of the issues that at the beginning of the Revolution - which was our own doing, others did not impose it on us - due to the views that existed at that time, we entrusted the economy to the state; now, no matter how much effort is made to transfer the economy to the people and hand it over to the people, with proper planning that does not violate justice, the work does not progress; it is difficult. We issued the policies of Article 44, which meant that we should take the economy out of state control. I explained to the officials gathered in that upper level of this Hosseiniye how much currency we need, and this is impossible, it cannot be achieved unless we do this: Article 44 should be implemented as we have announced its policies.

Well, I have spoken about the economy at the beginning of the year for this year, last year, the year before, and the year before that; officials are also making efforts, I acknowledge that efforts are being made - efforts have always been made over these years - but it is not enough. What we want to say is that a new breath must be given to this work.

Today is the twenty-ninth of Bahman. Last year on the twenty-ninth of Bahman, we announced the policies of resistance economy to various institutions; today a year has passed. Resistance economy is essential for the country; whether there are sanctions or not, it is necessary. The day when there are no sanctions in this country, resistance economy is still essential, necessary. Resistance economy means we should arrange the economic foundation of the country in such a way that global shocks do not affect it. We should not mourn one day that oil has dropped from 100 dollars to 45 dollars; we should not mourn one day that the Americans threaten us that they will sanction this and that; we should not mourn that the Europeans have sanctioned our shipping. If there is a resistance economy in the country, none of these international shocks can harm the lives of the people. This is resistance economy; it means that within the country, the economic structure and foundation should be such that the forces of the people are utilized, real help is taken, planning is done, and the economic foundation becomes solid - I will now mention some cases that these works must be done - the reliance of the officials of the country should be on this, that they should set the economic movement of the country in this way. If this happens, there will be prosperity; if this happens, we will not fear the enemy's threats, we will not tremble at sanctions, we will not mourn the falling oil prices; this is resistance economy. The main reliance of resistance economy is again on the people; on domestic production.

A fundamental issue regarding the economy of the country is that the reliance of the country's budget on oil must be cut off; we must reach this point. Of course, the things I am telling you today and have repeatedly said are easy to say, but in practice, they are difficult tasks. I have been involved in execution for years; I know that execution is hard work, but I believe that this hard work can be done. Executing is harder than speaking; but this hard work can be done with determination, with trust in these people, with trust in these youth, with trust in the internal resources of the country, with trust in God Almighty who has promised victory. One of the tasks - which is the most important task - is that the reliance of the budget should be on domestic production, that is, on the income that the people produce and pay taxes on. I want to say two words about taxes:

My dear ones! Taxes are an obligation. Today we collect taxes from the weak - we collect taxes from employees, from workers, from small merchants - but we do not collect taxes from certain big capitalists, from certain unaccounted income earners; they have tax evasion; these are crimes; tax evasion is a crime. The one who refrains from paying taxes to the government - which the income that has been obtained and is in their possession is due to the space that the government has created and the work that the government is doing, so they must pay taxes - does not pay, in fact, makes the country dependent on the easy oil money, and when the country becomes dependent on oil money, these problems arise: one day it is sanctioned; one day oil becomes cheap; one day they threaten; the country falls into this situation. The issue of taxes is very important. Of course, I have heard that the tax authorities of the country are designing and doing good work; these works must be done quickly; they must be realized; help must be sought from the people, and the people must help; this is the first point. The first point of the important works that must be done is that the budget of the country, the administration of the government, should be through the income from the people, that is, from these taxes, which are related to production and business.

Another important point is the improvement of productivity, which is a common expression; I summarize this in two words in Persian. Our producer, our businessman should try to reduce waste, reduce production costs, and improve quality; this is productivity improvement. [Of course] part of the production cost is related to things that are not in the control of the businessman; for example, inflation is high, the wages of workers or the prices of raw materials are rising; some of these are there, but some are also waste; extravagance; unnecessary spending; these must be prevented.

Another important issue is to make maximum use of domestic capacities. Our country is located in a sensitive region; we have many neighbors, we have the sea above, we have the sea below, we have access to the whole world. When you look at our country on the map, it is a very sensitive and important land and air crossroads; it has access to the open seas; these are very important opportunities; in addition to resources, in addition to capabilities, planning should be done, thinking should be done, and these opportunities should be utilized in the best way.

Another point that relates more to the people is the consumption of domestic products, which I have repeatedly mentioned in my New Year speeches and elsewhere, and I am telling you now: people should consume domestic products; do not go after these brands. Now it has become fashionable to say "it is a brand"; what is a brand! Go for consuming domestic products. Those things that have domestic equivalents, the Iranian nation, with all its fervor, should not consume the foreign ones. I am not saying this only for a specific group; well, yes, when we say this, some religious people immediately listen to the words, and they ask whether to buy this foreign thing or not? I am not saying this only for the religious people and those who consider our words to have religious authority; I say this for anyone who cares about Iran, who cares about the future of the country, who cares about their children who will live in this country tomorrow. When you consume foreign products, you are actually helping to increase the volume of that foreign business, that foreign worker, that foreign capitalist, and domestic production suffers, fails. I say this to all the people, especially those who have high consumption; the government officials should also do the same; government officials in their consumptions, in the consumables used in buildings, in various things, must certainly consider domestic production.

Avoiding waste is another headline; avoiding waste, squandering wealth, wasting public resources, wasting water, wasting bread, destroying soil. Soil is a wealth, water is a wealth, bread is a valuable product; everyone should be careful, everyone should be vigilant, feel responsible, and not destroy these.

Knowledge-based companies; I emphasize these knowledge-based companies. Today we have many educated youth. A couple of weeks ago, high school students held an exhibition in this Hosseiniye, and they showed us truly amazing and astonishing advanced things; mostly young, a number of high school students! Well, our wealth is this; our treasure is this. Knowledge-based companies should be established. Knowledge-based companies are not only for industry; in industry, in agriculture, in services, in needs assessment; they should gather, look at what various economic businesses need, where their shortages are, and provide this to them; knowledge-based companies can even be active in this area. Serious struggle against smuggling is among the necessary tasks in the economy of the country. Serious struggle against bank defaulters; there are some who improperly and unjustly use bank facilities; they take loans for one purpose and use them for another that is not in the interest of the country; and then they do not settle their debts with the banks; these are truly criminals. I do not say that everyone who is in debt to the bank is a criminal; no, there may be someone who is in debt to the bank, [but] they should also be helped; there are cases where they are in debt but should be helped; but some should be held accountable, should be questioned. These works must be done in the country.

Who should do these? We have warned a lot in these years; officials have also made a lot of efforts, but neither the warnings I have given are enough, nor the efforts made by the officials are enough; these are not enough. Serious work must be done; the people must also help the government, the officials, and the judiciary so that they can carry out these tasks. We can do it; we can stand against the uproar that our enemies create over sanctions and these matters; we can thwart their goals. When we do not do these works, when we do not engage in these activities, then the result is what you observe now; the enemy sits there, sets conditions for our nuclear program; then says if you do not accept these conditions, I will impose sanctions in this way and that way; well, this is how it becomes.

The enemy is making maximum use of the weapon of sanctions; their goal is to humiliate the Iranian nation; their goal is to stop this great movement that could only be carried out on the shoulders of the Iranian nation. They want to stop the Islamic Revolution movement, the Islamic system movement, the movement towards a new Islamic civilization; because they know how this movement is developing in the world and attracting nations' attention; they want to prevent this. These sanctions and threats and conditionalities are because of this.

My belief is that even in the nuclear issue, if we proceed as they dictate and accept their dictation, their destructive movement and their sanctions will not be lifted; they will still create various problems; because they oppose the essence of the Revolution. Of course, I believe that the capacity of our youth is very high. Just a couple of days ago, Basij students sent me a message and complained that why you do not use us students in advancing the goals of the Islamic Revolution; this is an important point. A student who is studying expects and sends me a message asking why you do not use our presence in important issues of the Revolution in the region - whether in military and security matters, or in various other matters -; the spirit of our youth is like this. You saw the spirit of the Iranian nation on the twenty-second of Bahman. Now on one side, the bullying government of America, which has not stopped its bullying despite all the defeats it has faced in the region, and on the other side, its European followers are imposing new sanctions.

The Iranian nation can also impose sanctions; let us say that if there is a plan for sanctions, in the future it is the Iranian nation that will sanction them. The largest share of gas in the world is in our possession, it belongs to the Iranian nation; gas is a very important and influential energy that the world needs, and this poor Europe needs this gas; this gas is in our possession; Iran currently has the largest share of gas in the world - until the current discoveries in Iran -; if we account for both oil and gas, the Islamic Republic of Iran has the largest amount of oil and gas combined; we can sanction them when the time is right; and the Islamic Republic can do this.

The Iranian nation and the Islamic Republic have shown that their will is strong; in every field, in every issue that the Islamic Republic of Iran has seriously entered, it has shown that its will is strong, its determination is firm, it can work. In this issue of ISIS, they formed a coalition; of course, they lie, it is deceitful; they wrote a letter to our Foreign Ministry saying that if you say America supports ISIS, no, this is a lie, we do not support it. Well, shortly after that, photos of American military aid to ISIS, which were in the hands of revolutionary Mujahideen, were published! They speak, they claim, [but] they lie, and that too a lie that becomes clear so soon and so obviously. The Islamic Republic is not like this; when we enter, as Amir al-Mu'minin said, we will not have thunder and lightning unless there is rain to follow it. The Iranian nation, without a doubt, in the future, which God willing will not be far away and you dear youth will certainly witness that future, will be at the peaks of honor and pride in every respect.

God willing, may God grant you success; God willing, may God include you in His mercy and grace. "Send my regards to my dear ones, the people of Tabriz and Azerbaijan"; may you live long; God willing, may you be successful and supported.