Statements in Meeting with Various Segments of the People

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

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master and prophet, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure and chosen progeny, especially the Awaited One among the inhabitants of the earth.

Welcome, dear brothers and sisters, who have come from various provinces of the country, having made the effort to attend from far away, and today you have filled our Hosseiniyeh with the fragrance of the martyrs' names, their memories, and the revolutionary spirit. I thank those dear brothers who sang songs and recited the Quran collectively. Of course, there was some noise in the session, and the beautiful recitation of these dear brothers did not reach the ears of some; you missed it, but I listened carefully and benefited from it. The noble verses of the Quran and the words of the Quran, whenever recited and read, are a source of spirituality, meaning, and blessing; especially these verses that these dear brothers selected, which were from Surah Al-Ahzab, indicating the clear and direct path of the Islamic Ummah in difficult times, in the hard circumstances of the era, and illuminating the way for the Ummah. It makes clear that if the Islamic Ummah faces problems at any moment, in any period - such as the problems mentioned in these verses - what the path is. "Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with God"; when the covenant with God and the agreement that the hearts of the believers have made with God is sincere, all affairs will progress; all problems will be resolved. Of course, life has obstacles, it has problems; there is no paved road in front of any nation; they must pave the way with their own effort, smooth it out, and move towards their goals. Nations that have reached the peak of spirituality, civilization, prosperity, and happiness have moved this way. These verses teach us these things.

Well, the month of Dhul-Qi'dah, which we are on the verge of, is the first of the sacred months. The sacred month means a month of respect; that is, the months that, according to the Lord of the worlds, "Among them are four sacred". God Almighty has made four months more respected than others; with specific boundaries of laws that this respect pertains to what and in what matters. Muslims must learn from this divine teaching. The sacred month - which is the divine respected month, according to the great mystic, the late Haj Mirza Ali Agha Ghazi - is a month in which Muslims must prepare themselves with greater attention to God Almighty and more devotion to enter into the sensitive and important fields of life. What is currently at stake for the Iranian nation - this great and proud nation - is precisely that it should advance and move forward with power, speed, dignity, and pride on the path of glory it has taken.

Today's session is a special one; that is, groups of our dear people have come from all corners of the country, from several provinces; from the southeast of the country to the northwest, various ethnicities, Persians, Turks, Kurds, Baluchis, are present in our gathering today; this has meaning; it signifies that a united Iran, with various and numerous ethnicities, has a single goal; they have a single path. Yes, languages may differ, religions may differ, but the lofty goals of this nation are the same; everyone wants to introduce the dear Iran as a model of an Islamic country to the world. The model of an Islamic country does not mean that in this country all people are only engaged in prayer, fasting, supplication, and invocations; no, these exist, these are spirituality, but alongside this spirituality, there is material progress, scientific growth, development of justice, reduction of class distances, and the removal of examples and peaks of elitism; these are the characteristics of an Islamic society. In such a society, people are happy, feel secure, feel at peace, move towards their lofty goals, worship God, and also achieve worldly progress; the Iranian nation seeks such a society; everyone wants this; there is no distinction between Shia and Sunni, Kurdish and Baluchi, Persian and Turk; everyone is pursuing this. Well, this becomes a model; when it becomes a model, when it is exemplified, then other Muslim nations will find the way.

Our problem today is this; global arrogance and colonialism, for one or two centuries, have found it beneficial to sow discord among Muslim nations. They found it beneficial because in this way they could plunder their wealth, prevent them from the progress that was their right; they could exploit them. The global powers, thanks to the knowledge they have gained and the technology they have developed and the weapons they have manufactured, set this as their goal, and unfortunately, they have succeeded to a large extent. The fact that we have constantly extended a hand of friendship to Muslim nations and to Muslim governments from the beginning of the revolution until today, inviting them to unity, to solidarity, to stand firm against the enemy's conspiracies, is because of this.

When the Iranian nation was able to reach a point where it could show itself to the world as a truly Muslim nation, this is the greatest advertisement for Islam; other nations will also head in this direction, and the formation of a great Islamic Ummah, which is a source of dignity and a means of promoting Islam throughout the world, will occur; that Islamic civilization that we expect to overcome the misleading and corrupt material civilization of the West will be realized; its precondition is here; its precondition is that we, the Iranian nation, can move towards becoming a model. Well, everyone must strive; both the officials must strive, and the individuals must strive. This matter is not a one or two-year issue; it is a long-term matter; it takes time; just as you look at Islamic civilization, you see that the peak of Islamic civilization was in the fourth and fifth centuries, when it was scientifically advanced, and great scholars, researchers, philosophers, and material scientists emerged in the Islamic world who were able to advance the world, and many of today's Western advancements are indebted to that movement. Well, today, of course, our speed will be greater; we will reach that result faster, God willing, but it will still take time.

In these 37, 38 years since the beginning of the revolution, we have made good progress. Truly, if someone looks with fairness, the dependent, backward, and unknown Iran under the feet of America and England has become a country where America, England, and others line up to seize the existing capabilities of the Islamic Republic in the region, but they cannot; that is, the Islamic dignity and the dignity of the Islamic system and Islamic Iran have expanded to such an extent that those who looked down on nations, including the Iranian nation - like during the era of the Shah - today are forced to confront it as a powerful rival. This is the general progress of the nation. We have made progress in science, in politics, in various issues of Islam. In terms of social justice, today there is a world of difference compared to the past; of course, we are still far from true Islamic justice, we are far from the desired justice. Today, unfortunately, the signs of elitism and extravagance and various deviations in our society are not few, but when we compare it to before the revolution - now you young people who did not see before the revolution; we and those who did see before the revolution - the progress of the Iranian nation and the Islamic country compared to that time is a very remarkable progress.

Well, now if we want to reach that model point, what is the way? What I want to say in two words is that the way is to rely on the internal capabilities and potentials of this nation. We have a lot of potential. This nation has many unused potentials; the fact that we have considered an eight percent growth in our program and said that the country must reach an eight percent growth over the course of the program is due to the countless potentials that exist within. At first, some said that an eight percent growth in economic matters is not possible; then the officials came to us and said no, what you wrote is correct; an eight percent growth is achievable; however, it requires work, correct policies, and a well-planned strategy; it cannot be done with laziness and idleness and reliance on others; it must be pursued with planning. This is because of the country's potential; the country's potential is very high. Of our approximately eighty million population, more than thirty percent of this population is between 20 and 35 years old; that is, they are in their youth; youth is a symbol of movement, a symbol of vitality. We have so many young people in the country; among these young people, there are millions of educated, literate, specialized, and innovative individuals. Our infrastructural capabilities over these 37 years are very abundant; we have created extraordinarily effective and efficient infrastructures in various fields - when I say we, I mean the country's officials have created them; I am nothing - everything is ready for movement and progress.

Well, this progress has, thanks be to God, taken place. You compare the thirty years after the Islamic revolution with the thirty years of some countries that I do not want to name; thirty years under American influence, they even received cash from America, meaning annually a certain amount - several hundred million or several billion dollars - from America; what was the result? After thirty years, they reported that in their capital city, there are two million homeless people living in cemeteries. This is the result of American influence over a country and American dominance over a country. Well, therefore, what is important is reliance on internal capacity.

Sometimes the enemies create obstacles. Yes, it is wise for a person to go with prudence to remove these obstacles, but one cannot trust the enemy; one example is the nuclear negotiations and the JCPOA, where today our diplomatic officials and those who were present in these negotiations from beginning to end are saying that America has violated its commitments, that America, under the calm appearance and smooth tongue of its officials and its foreign minister and others, is sabotaging from behind, preventing the country's economic relations with other countries; this is what our JCPOA officials are saying. This is a statement that I have been repeating for a year and a year and a half; that one cannot trust the Americans - some found it hard to accept - but today our officials are saying it. Just last week, our respected negotiating officials had a meeting with their counterparts in Europe; our officials said these things to them, and they had no answer; they said you have violated your commitments, you have committed this transgression, you have not done what you were supposed to do, you have sabotaged from behind, and they had no answer to give; six months have passed since the signing of the JCPOA, and there has been no tangible and noticeable effect on the people's livelihood; [while] the JCPOA was supposed to lift the sanctions; to lift the oppressive sanctions. Is it not so? Well, it has not been lifted; now they say gradually, slowly it is getting better! Was the discussion about gradually? At that time, the officials told us and the people that in these negotiations, it was agreed that when Iran fulfills its commitments, all sanctions would be lifted at once; that is, the obstacle that America had created in front of the Iranian nation in a tyrannical and malicious manner would be removed; well, now six months have passed since that deadline, and it has not been lifted; is six months a short time for an eighty million population? In these six months, how much could the respected government have done if it were not for this American malice? This JCPOA has become a model for us, an experience. Last year, in a public speech - or it was last year or a year and a half ago; I do not remember the exact date - I said that the JCPOA and these nuclear negotiations would be a model for us; let us see what the Americans do; these who now come with smooth tongues, sometimes write letters, express devotion, express companionship, sit in consultative sessions and negotiations, and speak with smooth tongues to Iranian officials, let us see what they do in practice. Now it has become clear what they do in practice! In appearance, they make promises, speak with smooth tongues, but in practice, they conspire, sabotage, and prevent the progress of affairs; this is America; this is the experience. Now the Americans say come let us talk about regional issues with you! Well, this experience tells us that this is poison for us.

This experience has shown us that we cannot sit down with them as a trusted party in any issue. Sometimes a person talks with the enemy, but with an enemy who adheres to his word and one can trust that for any reason he will not break his promises and commitments. With this enemy, one can talk, yes; but when it has been proven that the enemy is untrustworthy, that it is an enemy that has no qualms about breaking its promises and does so, and then when we say why did you break your promise, it still smiles, opens its smooth tongue again, and justifies it somehow, one cannot enter into negotiations with this [enemy]. The reason I have been constantly repeating for years that we do not negotiate with America is this. This indicates that our problems in this matter, in the issues related to the region, in the various problems we have, in the problems we have with America and its ilk, cannot be solved through negotiation; we must choose a path for ourselves and follow that path; let the enemy chase after you, let the enemy chase after you. Our political and diplomatic officials explicitly say that the Americans want to take everything and give nothing! [If] you take one step back, they will come one step forward. The reason we keep saying we do not negotiate is that some say, well, negotiation is not a problem; the problem with negotiation is this: it diverts you from your correct path, it takes away your concessions - when you negotiate, it means you give a concession, you take a concession; this is the meaning of negotiation; negotiation is not just sitting and chatting and talking and laughing; negotiation means give something, take something - and it takes away what you should give, but does not give you what it should give; it bullies you; well, that is what arrogance means, that is what global arrogance means, that is bullying, considering oneself superior, not adhering to one's word, not considering oneself committed; this is the meaning of arrogance, it breaks its promises. Well, our great Imam said: America is the great Satan; truly this expression is an extraordinary expression. God Almighty quotes Satan as saying on the Day of Judgment to those who followed him: "Indeed, God promised you the promise of truth, and I promised you, but I broke my promise"; Satan reproaches his followers in this way on the Day of Judgment. Then God Almighty says from the words of Satan that he tells them: "So do not blame me, but blame yourselves"; do not blame me, blame yourselves. This is exactly applicable to America today. Now Satan says this on the Day of Judgment, and the Americans say this in the world today; they make promises, do not act, break their promises. They take immediate concessions and do not give deferred concessions; this is the situation of America. Well, therefore, one should not trust others.

These statements made about the major issues of the country and the major policies of the country should be thought about by our dear youth; these stem from experience, from recognizing the enemy and understanding the situation. This is not just a statement that someone says something so that someone else comes and gives a response that no, this is not the case; no, our dear youth should pay attention to these. Fortunately, we have many intelligent and talented young people in the country; they should sit down and analyze, and then the path will become clear.

What is the way? The way is the same as we have said: reliance on internal talent, reliance on the internal capacities of the country, reliance on these young people, reliance on the innovations that the young people make, the work they pursue, the knowledge they acquire, the knowledge that is transformed into technology. Our potentials are abundant. Statistics show - of course, this data is from a few years ago - we have several hundred thousand small production units; this is very important! I have repeatedly emphasized in speeches that the dear officials of the country should focus on small and medium-sized production units. We have several hundred thousand of these units in the country. They should be revived, employment will be created, and innovation will emerge.

We rely on knowledge-based economy; this important work that has fortunately started in the country for a few years must be developed. We rely on domestic production. I have emphasized so much on consuming domestic products. I am now telling you, I am telling our dear people, go for consuming domestic products, promote Iranian labor, promote Iranian work. Unfortunately, the reality is not like this. In various sectors - suppose in household living items - domestic factories are working, producing good and high-quality goods equivalent to foreign goods, sometimes even better than foreign goods, but when you go to the market, you see everything is foreign goods; why? Where do these come from? My emphasis on preventing the import of products that have domestic equivalents is because of this; this is the way.

[Regarding] smuggling, I have told the officials that dear sir! When you find that smuggling gang and that large quantity of smuggled goods, which weighs several thousand tons, and you bring it into the country, burn this goods in front of everyone; strike a blow to the smuggler, to the goods that have domestic equivalents. Well, it is clear that when foreign goods are imported - whether from legal entry points like customs and the like, or from smuggling points, which unfortunately are very numerous - domestic production will sleep. When domestic production sleeps, the same situation arises that exists today: our youth become unemployed, our employment decreases, recession prevails in the country, and the living conditions and livelihood of the people become difficult. These cannot be solved through relations with America and Europe; we must solve these ourselves. These are tasks that are our responsibility; this is the way.

The country has many capacities, [it has] a lot of innovation; this eighty million population - which of course can reach 150 million, and God willing, the officials, as we have repeatedly emphasized, should help ensure that this young population does not diminish; they should not stop the generation; they should not gradually lead the country's population to aging - this population, this country, with this capacity, with these four-season resources that our country has, can progress materially, and the problems of the people's livelihood can be resolved; this is the way.

I think a lot about the livelihood issues of the people; I am very concerned about the issue of people's livelihood, but as much as I think, as much as I consult with experts and knowledgeable people, I see that there is no other way than to firmly rely on internal matters. The fact that foreign traders come and go and nothing warms up from them - which has not happened until now - [what benefit is that]? For about a year now, they have been coming and going; they have done nothing. Even if they want to do something, it is the appropriation of the Iranian market, which is detrimental to us. The benefit of the arrival and departure of these delegations should be investment, it should be the creation of production, it should be bringing new technology where we need it; these should be there; these are not or are scarce. These things should be observed and pursued by the respected officials. The fact that we said action and implementation, of course, they are now busy, and God willing, the results of the work should become tangible and noticeable so that the people feel and touch it; this is the way.

Now, of course, in the field of cultural and spiritual issues, there is a lot to say; we do not want to enter into that, we do not want to discuss it; the discussion is in its place. The discussion of economic issues and livelihood issues is this. If we want to improve the livelihood of the people, the problems they have, the classes that exist, we must pay attention to these matters.

One of the most important issues is preventing internal corruption. This work that has now been raised and has been stated, and the officials have thankfully explicitly announced that they will stop these corruptions and these excesses and these exorbitant salaries - which in some places, thankfully, has been done; in some sectors and organizations that have reported to us, this action has been realized, it has been implemented - must become widespread, must be pursued, must not be abandoned; corruption must be stopped.

The elitism must be stopped; elitism is a plague for the country. When elitism arises at the peaks of society, it will overflow to the body; [then] you see a family that does not have a good livelihood, when they want to marry off their son or daughter or suppose they want to hold a party, they are forced to act in an elitist manner. When elitism becomes culture, this happens. The behavior of the officials, the words of the officials, the teachings they give must be against this elitism; as Islam is.

This is regarding the issues of the country that my words are about. Regarding economic issues, what I have, which I have constantly presented to both the people and the officials, is this; we say rely on ourselves, identify our own power; the pains of the country are known, the remedies are also known; let us plan for this treatment and move forward.

[Regarding] regional issues. The region has become a tumultuous place today; here too, when we look, the hand of America is involved again. Yes, the fact that the Saudi government openly establishes relations with the Zionist regime and makes visits public is a dagger in the back of the Islamic Ummah. There is no doubt that what the Saudis have done - open relations with the Zionist regime - is truly a dagger that has been thrust into the Islamic Ummah from behind; they have committed a great betrayal, they are guilty, but here too, the hand of America is involved. The Saudi government, because it is subordinate to America, because it is subjugated by America, because it looks to America for guidance, has committed this great mistake; here too, the hand of America is involved.

Or if you see that Yemen has been bombed for nearly a year and a half; is this a joke? A country, and not its military centers, [but] its markets, hospitals, people's homes, gatherings, squares, schools, come and bomb them like this! This is not a small matter; this is a very great crime. They do not understand the month of Ramadan, nor the sacred month, nor do they consider the children, they commit all this child-killing; well, this is also a great crime that unfortunately the Saudi government has committed; but this is also with the backing of America, with the green light of America, with American planes, with weapons and munitions that have been imported from America; they are the ones who provide all the facilities. Even when the United Nations wants to say something in this regard - now after a long time, it wants to say something just and condemn - they silence it with money, with threats, with pressure; that this unfortunate, blackened Secretary-General of the United Nations came and confessed and said they pressured me! Well, they pressured you, you cannot, go aside! Why do you stand and betray humanity? This is a betrayal of humanity. Here too, the hand of America is involved.

In the case of Bahrain, where a foreign army comes from a country to put pressure on the people of Bahrain; here too, the green light of America is involved. Well, now that Saudi government is a government that is being run by children, truly immature children, it is in their hands, but what one understands through analyzing the issues, through observing the issues, is that this is truly the hand of America, the support of America.

These Takfiri groups are the same. Now they claim that they have formed a coalition against Takfiri groups - of course, they are not doing anything right against them; in some places, according to reports we receive, they even help them - but the production of these groups goes back to America, and some American officials have confessed this; they have confessed and said we helped ISIS come, both to sow discord within the Islamic Ummah and to promote Umayyad and Marwanite Islam. This Wahhabi and Takfiri Islam is the same Umayyad Islam, Marwanite Islam, an Islam that is light-years away from true Islam; they have defamed Islam. Of course, now it has also caught up with them. It is well-known in Persian that "whoever sows the wind will reap the storm"; now they are slowly reaping the storm. But it is their fault, and they were the ones who did this.

In other matters, it is the same. The Americans claim that they want to solve the problems of the region, but in reality, the opposite is true; they are the creators of the problems or the exacerbators of these problems; they prevent the resolution of the problems. [If] the hands of the nations of the region are free, they will solve the issues. We again invite the Islamic governments, these Arab governments around us, they must know that America is not trustworthy; America looks at them as tools; tools to maintain the Zionist regime and to preserve its own arrogant and imperialistic interests in the region. America has no real interest in them; it uses their money, uses their forces for its own purposes; to create a shield, to preserve the Zionist regime and to maintain its imperialistic goals in the region. This is what they are doing.

In regional matters, we believe that the solution is the unity of Muslim nations, the unity of Muslim governments, and standing firm against the imperialistic goals and the goals of America and some European governments. Some European governments have also discredited themselves due to their subservience to America and have fallen out of favor with the people of the region. Well, some European governments had even some respect in the eyes of our people - the people of Iran - but they have disgraced themselves by following America. [Their] goals must be recognized, and action must be taken against their goals. Nations can, and our nation [too] is standing firm.

Let me also tell you this: with all these narratives and all these details, America is becoming weaker in the region day by day. Its plans have been exposed, and it is clear what it is after: it wants to interfere in various countries. It is not the case that it is only an enemy to us and a friend to others; no, you have seen in Turkey; [of course] it has not yet been proven in our view, but there is a strong suspicion that this coup that occurred in Turkey was orchestrated and prepared by the Americans. If proven, it will be a great disgrace for America. Turkey was a country that had good relations with America and said it was America's regional ally; [but] even with Turkey, they are not willing to cooperate; because there is an Islamic inclination there; they oppose Islam, they oppose Islamic inclinations, therefore even there they instigate a coup, of course, it was suppressed, they were defeated, and they have become detested in the eyes of the Turkish people; in other places, it is the same; both in Iraq, in Syria, and in various other regions, thanks be to God, they are becoming weaker day by day.

If we, the Iranian nation, are optimistic about the promise that God Almighty has given and prepare the grounds for that promise, the problems will be resolved. God has said: "If you help God, He will help you"; if you support God's religion and strengthen divine motivations and support, certainly God Almighty will help you; and whoever God Almighty helps, no creature in the world can weaken him; he will become stronger and more victorious day by day. We hope that God Almighty will grant victory to the Iranian nation in all fields - security, economic, military, political, cultural, and scientific - God willing, and make you, dear nation, happier and more victorious every day than the day before.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.