Statements in a Video Conference with the People of East Azerbaijan on the Anniversary of the 29th of Bahman Uprising of the People of Tabriz in 1356

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 Muhammad and his pure family, especially the Remaining One of God among the people.

I extend my greetings and salutations to the dear people of Tabriz and Azerbaijan, and I commemorate the historical and unforgettable day of the 29th of Bahman, which, unfortunately, is being held this year in this manner due to necessity. Every year, we were pleased to gather in this Hussainiyah with your presence and the fervent atmosphere created by your Azerbaijani and Tabrizi sentiments; unfortunately, this year this [opportunity] is not available; and this is part of the various events of life; each day is different in its own way. God willing, we hope that these obstacles will soon be removed.

I congratulate all of you on the arrival of the month of Rajab and hope that everyone benefits from the spiritual blessings of this month. Yes, in this month, there are no gatherings, and what was possible for the people in worship gatherings and moments of remembrance and attention is not available this year, but let us not neglect the prayers of Rajab at home; they are very good prayers, and this temporary suspension of gatherings should not cause us to be oblivious to the blessings of this month and to worship and supplicate to the Divine.

What I will discuss today consists of a few words at the beginning regarding the merits of Tabriz and Azerbaijan. Although we have spoken a lot about this, my belief is that these words must be repeated so that the minds of our dear youth, especially the dear youth of that region, become more familiar with these truths; a few words about the commemoration of the 29th of Bahman 56 - this very important historical event - and a few sentences about the lesson we should take from this event today and how we should utilize this great lesson to address the weaknesses we currently have. I will also say a brief word about the elections.

The honors of Tabriz and the region of Azerbaijan: 1) A region that nurtures elites However, regarding Tabriz, the event of the 29th of Bahman 56 was a glorious jihadist and operational event; it was an important act and truly a source of pride for the people of Tabriz, but the honors of Azerbaijan and Tabriz are not limited to this jihadist act and similar acts; the scope of the honors of this city and this region is much broader; I will mention a few examples:

One issue is the nurturing of elites. The region of Azerbaijan, especially Tabriz, is a region that nurtures elites in science, art, and politics. In science, both religious sciences and natural and material sciences, in the last 150 years - I have not researched much before that - this region has produced great jurists, great philosophers, theologians, and scientists in natural sciences, making it an outstanding and truly elite-nurturing region; thus, nurturing elites in science, nurturing elites in art [as an example] of poets from Tabriz, artists from Tabriz, artists of various arts, the late Shahriyar (may God have mercy on him) is mentioned, and I believe he was not the only one; there were many poets in Tabriz who wrote poetry in Persian or Turkish. Likewise, in politics, Azerbaijan has presented prominent figures in the past and present; therefore, one of the characteristics of this region is nurturing elites, which must be preserved and maintained.

2) Creating movements in the historical transformations of the last two centuries Another point is creating movements in the historical and political transformations of the country. Again, in the last 200 years, especially the last 150 years, when we look, [Azerbaijan] has been a region that creates movements. There is a time when someone joins a story, and there is a time when someone creates a movement in a story, creates a transformation, and influences the creation and continuity of that movement; Tabriz and Azerbaijan have been of this kind. From the era of the fatwa against tobacco by the late Mirza Shirazi, where the late Haj Mirza Jawad Mujtahid, one of the prominent scholars of Tabriz and a member of the well-known Mujtahid family, was influential in this region; well, Mirza Shirazi was in Samarra; if the scholars of the cities of Iran, like Mirza Ashtiani in Tehran and he here and some other scholars in other regions were not present, this fatwa would not have become widespread and would not have had the desired effect. Here, the late Haj Mirza Jawad actively entered the field. The same applies to the Constitutional Revolution - which I will mention later - so in the historical and political transformations of the country, this region, especially the city of Tabriz and the entire region of Azerbaijan, has had this spirit of creating movements.

3) A stronghold against foreign attacks The next point is that Azerbaijan has been a stronghold of Iran against foreign attacks; that is, we have always faced attacks from aggressive neighbors - whether Tsarist Russia, the former Ottoman Empire, or the Soviet Union - if Azerbaijan and Tabriz had not existed, and if there had not been resistances and standpoints and sacrifices, this aggression could have spread to the central regions of the country. Azerbaijan has been a solid dam and fortress that has always repelled these attacks and prevented them.

4) Deep attachment to Islam and strong patriotism A very important point is that the region of Tabriz and Azerbaijan has had two constant and everlasting identity features: one is a deep attachment to Islam and Islamic faith; and the second is strong patriotism and zeal for Iran; this has always existed in various periods in Azerbaijan, where they have given such importance to Islam and Iran and shown such zeal that it is truly a significant highlight; Azerbaijanis have repeatedly stood against the plots of foreigners who wanted to separate various regions of Iran, and they have preserved the integrity of the country.

5) Having influential figures in national issues One point is the role of influential figures. There are many influential figures in all national issues in this region; as I mentioned, in the tobacco issue, the late Haj Mirza Jawad, in the early events of the Constitutional Revolution, Sattar Khan and Baqer Khan - who Baqer Khan was a neighbor of my father, he had seen Baqer Khan in the neighborhood - and then in another period, when the Russians had entered Tabriz and were there, the late Thiqatal-Islam and other great scholars struggled, fought, and were martyred. Then in another period, the movement of Sheikh Muhammad Khiyabani and Mirza Ismail Nobari, who entered the field and did things that led to the martyrdom of Khiyabani. In the discussion of the revolution, in the preliminary issues of the revolution, from the very first day, that is, from the year 42 when the movement began, among the detained scholars from all over the country, three of the well-known scholars of Tabriz were present. Then also in various events on the days leading up to the revolution, the movement of the late Qazi and others; then in the issues of the revolution itself, Martyr Modarresi and Martyr Qazi; in the holy defense, Martyr Baqeri and others; dozens of such prominent figures are unforgettable figures. I say we must not allow this glorious history to be forgotten; this history must be preserved. Certainly, without a correct narrative of the history of Azerbaijan, any narrative of the history of Iran is incomplete and deficient. In the correct narrative of the issues of Azerbaijan, those who are interested in this work, those who are interested, must enter. This is a few short sentences about Azerbaijan and Tabriz.

The characteristics of the people of Azerbaijan in creating the epic of the 29th of Bahman And now, regarding the 29th of Bahman 56. Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) gave a message after the event of the 29th of Bahman in Tabriz; in that message, the Imam mentioned three characteristics about the dear people of Azerbaijan; this word "dear" is also in the Imam's statement, where he says, "the dear people of Azerbaijan." He mentioned three characteristics: bravery, zeal, and piety; these three characteristics are truly important indicators for evaluating a human collective and for valuing the activities and efforts that this collective undertakes; that is, bravery in its place, zeal in its place, and piety likewise.

When the people of Tabriz rose on the 29th of Bahman, they had witnessed the events of the 19th of Dey in Qom; they saw how the regime would brutally enter the field and massacre the people. The regime also thought that after the Qom incident, the spark of hope had been extinguished in the eyes of the people of Iran, and no one would dare to enter the field. In such circumstances, the people of Tabriz entered the field with a volume several times greater than what had happened in Qom and initiated the idea of the "fortieth" (commemoration). The fact that the series of fortieths began and culminated in those great popular movements was initiated in Tabriz; that is, the people of Tabriz were the innovators of the fortieth commemoration for their martyrs before themselves. Well, this was their bravery, their faith, their zeal that brought them to the scene and shaped these great events. I believe that if the epic movement of the people of Tabriz on the 29th of Bahman had not occurred, the bloody movement of the people of Qom on the 19th of Dey might have remained isolated and gradually forgotten; like the movement of the 15th of Khordad in 42, which was gradually being forgotten; of course, after the revolution, it was revived, but before the revolution, it was slowly fading from the memory of the people what had happened on the 15th of Khordad 42 in Tehran, Qom, Varamin, and similar places. The 19th of Dey of the people of Qom could also have faced the same fate if the people of Tabriz had not come to the field. The people came and created the epic of the 29th of Bahman and kept the epic of Qom alive, injecting blood into the veins of the movement.

Well, these three characteristics, namely bravery, zeal, and piety, also manifested themselves in the events of the revolution and after the revolution; both in the early events of the revolution when foreign hands were seeking separatism, the people of Tabriz entered the field, and also in the holy defense; where the Ashura Brigade was one of the breakthrough and brave brigades, and Martyr Baqeri is an unforgettable figure whose memory will never fade from minds, and his close friends who were with him - of course, I had seen him repeatedly - and those who were associated with him recount things about his luminosity, spirituality, and purity that truly evoke envy. And then in the fitna of the Muslim creation, the people of Tabriz were [present]; that is, those who initiated the fitna of the Muslim creation thought they were going to do something for Tabriz and Azerbaijan [but] those who stood against the fitna were the people of Tabriz themselves, and they were the ones who did not allow it, and the Imam said this at that time; he said no one wants to intervene, the people of Tabriz will respond to them. Then also in the following years, in the fitna of 88, the people of Tabriz entered the field a day earlier than Tehran and a day earlier than the entire country and neutralized that fitna.

Rejecting the norms of the system of domination; the cause of enmity with the Islamic system Well, this is also about the 29th of Bahman 56 and the importance of the event and the greatness of the event that must never be forgotten. Now, what lesson do we take from this? This is my main discussion here. What is our lesson today from this event? Well, the Islamic revolution has faced enmity from the superpowers from the very beginning; a front was formed. When we say superpowers, we mean the Soviet Union of that day alongside America; they had a hundred issues of disagreement, but in this matter of confronting the Islamic Republic and the Islamic revolution and the system that emerged from Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), these two superpowers were united; the Europeans and European powers were the same, and their followers - the reactionaries of the region and others - were the same; a front was formed against the Islamic revolution. Well, what was the cause of this enmity? This is a point we must never forget.

The cause of this enmity was simply that the Islamic system rejected the norms of the system of domination. What dominated the world was the system of domination. What is the system of domination? It means the world is divided into two parts: the dominating part and the submissive part; the dominating power must be dominant: in its politics, its culture, its economy; and the submissive part must submit to the dominating power. The countries of the world were divided into dominating and submissive; this was a well-established global norm. They had divided the world; part of the world was under America, part under the Soviet Union of that day, and part under the second-tier powers that followed them; this was the state of the world. The Islamic Republic and the Islamic system and the Islamic revolution rejected this system; well, this was the lifeblood of global arrogance; the norms of the system of domination were the lifeblood of global arrogance; the existence of global arrogance depended on this; the Islamic Republic rejected this, the Islamic system rejected this, and they stood against it. Of course, to have a pretext, they always fabricated excuses: one day it was the issue of human rights, one day it was the various forms of portraying the unrestrained dominance of religion as ugly, one day it was the nuclear issue, one day it was the missile issue, one day it was the regional presence; these are excuses, the essence of the matter is that this Islamic system is not willing to become a partner in the global system of domination and to cooperate with them in domination and submission. The Islamic system stands against oppression, stands against domination.

Confronting the enemy through: 1) Strengthening national identity as a foundational thought Well, in the face of this enmity and this front, our dear and steadfast nation needs to strengthen its identity; they must strengthen their personality and identity and increase their inner strength; this is an absolute necessity. What gives a nation and a movement identity and strength? First of all, having a solid foundational thought. The reason why many countries that revolted and created movements against domination and global arrogance and oppression and despotism returned to the path of their predecessors after a short period - some after five years, some after ten years - and became like them is that they did not have a solid foundational thought. When you see sometimes in some words of foreigners - and unfortunately, some internal elements also imitate them - the issue of ideology-deprivation is raised, this is what it means. The main enemy for the dominators is this foundational thought, which is an Islamic foundation; this foundation is derived from Islam; in the statements of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), this foundational thought is explained in detail. If you look at the numerous volumes of the Imam's statements, this Islamic foundational thought and ideological foundation is clearly manifested there, and the extensive statements of the late Imam are a rich treasure in this regard; then there are also valuable lessons from our revolutionary thinkers available to us, from Martyr Motahhari and Martyr Beheshti and others to the present time, who have derived this foundation from the Quran and Islamic texts and provide it. Of course, I firmly believe that the intellectual forces of the Islamic system must follow this path and continue; day by day and anew, they must manifest and promote this thought; new issues that arise require new responses, and these responses must be provided to seekers and pioneers and youth.

2) Not aiding the enemy, not being afraid, and not getting tired, in practice Well, this was related to the foundational thought [that is necessary], but in practice, certain things are also necessary; that is, merely having this foundation is not enough. What is necessary in practice? Not being afraid, not getting tired, not losing hope, not being lazy, not unknowingly entering the enemy's plans and not aiding them; these are necessary in practice. In their own place, being ready for sacrifice; when we say in their own place, it means there are occasions that require sacrifice, one must take their life in hand:

"To place one's life in hand and rescue From the disgrace of a dark fate a country."

Like Martyr Soleimani, who took his life in hand and entered various fields [of battle], and other dear martyrs, like your own Martyr Baqeri, who in that very important and complex operation, when he had gone across the Tigris River and was calling his friends in those moments before martyrdom, he said, "Come and see what is happening here." I do not know what he was seeing; from the world of the unseen, from the world of spirituality, from the kingdom of existence, what things had appeared before him that he was inviting Martyr Kazemi and others - who themselves said this - to come and see what is happening here. Well, these are people who took their lives in hand and sacrificed. Sacrifice is necessary at times, but what is always necessary is what I mentioned: we must not get tired, we must not lose hope, we must not aid the enemy, we must not be lazy, and we must negate idleness and inaction in our lives.

Presence, sacrifice, not getting tired, and the courage of the Imam and the people in the revolution and in the scenes Of course, the Iranian nation is fortunately endowed with these characteristics; honestly, the Iranian nation has not gotten tired, and you have seen examples of this in the extraordinary funeral of Martyr Soleimani, and then in this 22nd of Bahman this year, with these conditions of Corona, with the new initiative that they entered the field and with enthusiasm did not allow the 22nd of Bahman to be canceled, and in various other events, you have seen. In the Bahman uprising of Tabriz, these characteristics were also evident; that is, the same not being afraid, not getting tired, not losing hope, entering the field, and sacrificing.

In the days leading up to the 22nd of Bahman in Tehran and in many cities, it was the same; there, too, first of all, Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) was the one who truly moved in front of the crowd. If the Imam had not been courageous, if the Imam had been afraid, if the Imam had lost hope, if the Imam had gotten tired, if the Imam had been lazy, this great event would not have occurred. The Imam was vigilant about the events moment by moment and was involved in the currents until he reached the point where he rejected the military government, brought the people to the streets, and the matter was resolved. [Secondly] the people also showed courage and did not fear and entered the field and truly made their presence felt.

Persistence and steadfastness on the path are essential for solving the country's problems Whenever there is this struggle, there is also divine guidance; that is, when this struggle occurs, this selflessness arises, the Almighty God does not abandon them; "And those who strive in Our cause, We will surely guide them to Our paths;" when the struggle of His servants becomes apparent, the Almighty God will also guide them; in addition to divine guidance, success and progress will also be achieved, as He said: "And if they remain steadfast on the right path, We will surely give them abundant water." "Abundant water" means quenching with abundant and pure water, which interpreters say is a metaphor for solving all life problems. If you persist on this path, remain steadfast - steadfastness means not deviating - move correctly, move in this straight path, certainly the problems of life will also be solved, the difficulties will be removed, the weaknesses will be eliminated; we must always pay attention to this point. The importance of the path that the Iranian nation has traveled until today is very high; we must be aware of this importance.

The achievements of the Islamic revolution for Iran The achievements of the revolution are truly great and astonishing achievements. Of course, unfortunately, we have done little in explaining these achievements; sometimes in speeches, sometimes in a televised statement, some things have been said, but much more exists to explain the achievements of the revolution. Truly, in the most important aspects of social life, the revolution has extraordinary and significant achievements, of which I will mention two or three.

1) Scientific progress of the country One is that the revolution transformed the face of the country, the face of Iran, from a scientifically backward country that was entirely at the end of the ranks of the countries of the world - a scientifically backward country, politically a parasite of the politics of great powers, economically dependent on great powers and at the mercy of great powers; that is, the economy of our country was at the mercy of great countries like America at one point and England at another point - into a free country, an independent country, a dear country, endowed with great scientific successes in vital fields today. Today, Iran is among the five, six, or at most ten countries in important fields; these fields are very significant. The country has progressed in these areas, and it is an independent, free, and respectable country; this is one of the most important things the revolution has accomplished.

Transforming the Iranian nation into a vibrant and proud nation The second point is that it has taken the Iranian nation out of a state of lethargy and aimlessness and following others, transforming it into a dynamic, lively, purposeful, proud, and respected nation in the world. This was not the case before the revolution; people were downcast, busy with their lives; there was no lofty goal, no great work, no broad perspective on global issues; only a few specific individuals, a small number in the country could have such a state, but the entire country was not like this. Today, the nation is a lively nation, a proud nation; with all these energetic youth. I mentioned in a talk that there are thousands of scientific youth hubs in the country today; numerous various groups engaged in scientific work, engaged in technical work, engaged in social work, which today, for example, is evident in the presence of youth - as the respected Friday prayer leader mentioned - in the issue of Corona, for example, in the issue of charitable assistance and solidarity with the needy. The youth enter the field, work; these things did not exist in the past; the nation changed, the nation moved from a state of lethargy to a state of vitality. This is one aspect.

2) Transforming the management of the country from an authoritarian government to a popular government The third point, which is very important, is that it transformed the management of the country from an authoritarian monarchy and individual rule into a popular government and republic and democracy. Today, the fate of the Iranian nation is in the hands of the people; it is the people who choose; they may choose well, they may choose poorly, but the people choose; this is very important. At that time, these words did not exist, and the country was an authoritarian country; everything was in their hands. One of these well-known American figures who was a friend of Mohammad Reza said that I went to Iran and told Mohammad Reza that this prime minister is incompetent, he said, "You don’t worry about it, I am doing all the work myself!" The reality was that everything was in the hands of one person, and he made decisions and acted; the people were completely powerless. Now, not only the people but even the officials were completely powerless; this is one aspect.

3) Construction services in the country Then, the services of the revolution in the construction of the country. I am truly astonished! Some people who now say other things, how do they not see these? This important event of serving the people in creating essential infrastructures. So many essential infrastructures have been created in the country; roads, dams, water supply, electricity supply, gas supply, industrial development, astonishing expansion of universities. In every small city, there is a university; so many universities, so many students! For example, consider that from 150,000 students at that time, suddenly we reach, for example, 10 million, 15 million students; today we have thirty times, forty times more students and graduates in various universities; these are infrastructural works and very important. And this is a monumental task that truly the revolution accomplished, and an ordinary government, a non-revolutionary government could not have accomplished this much.

4) Strengthening the country's military and defense power In addition to these, strengthening the military and defense power of the country. This is a country that could not withstand the attack of a few English and non-English forces in World War II for more than a few hours [but] for eight years, all the forces of the global powers, namely America, the Soviet Union, France, England, Germany, and others, and the money of reactionary governments, under the name of Saddam, fought against Iran - that is, a truly international war - and after eight years, they could not do anything, and through our military and defense forces and our people, they were expelled from the borders; this is not a small matter. This was in the early years of the revolution, in the first decade of the revolution, that such a great movement took place. Today, thank God, the state of our military forces is much better; it cannot be said that it is ten times better; it is dozens of times ahead of that day. Today, thank God, our country is a major regional power in terms of defense and a powerful force in terms of defense in the international view.

Well, the fact that various plots are constantly being devised by the regime of America and the Zionist regime and some European countries against the country is because they see that the country does not stop, the revolution does not stop, the revolution is constantly advancing; this causes them to concoct a new plot every day; and of course, God willing, the power of the Iranian nation and the power of the officials and agents of the country will neutralize these plots.

Acknowledgment of backwardness in some areas and the necessity of acting revolutionarily to address them Well, these are the achievements of the revolution; it is not a small matter; we must recognize and know these achievements. Of course, we have never hidden, nor will we hide that we have backwardness in some areas; backwardness that is by no means acceptable. In this backwardness, we ourselves are to blame, we officials are at fault; the people may also have some involvement in certain areas. This backwardness must be compensated for; this is due to our failure to act revolutionarily. Wherever we acted revolutionarily, we had no backwardness; wherever we fell short of the revolution, we took a non-revolutionary action and acted out of lethargy and negligence, backwardness occurred; primarily, the issue of the livelihood of the poor classes is that we have backwardness in this area and there is class disparity. Of course, let me also say that in this area where we have backwardness, compared to before the revolution, we are much ahead. Anyone who thinks that the situation before the revolution was like the situation today is completely mistaken.

In those days, I was in the field and connected with various classes, the poor classes, in Mashhad and in the places where we were [we had connections]; and we were not unaware of other places; the situation was very different from today and very bad; today, in that regard, we have progressed, but this [place] where we are today is not worthy of the revolution; we must have moved much more than this. The class disparity must be eliminated, and economic justice must be established in the true sense of the word in the country; this is our duty, this is our work, we must do it. Before the revolution, the population of the country was 35 million; today it is 85 million; at that time, we used the oil revenue many times more than today - we sold oil and used it - today, in addition to the sanctions that have been added, we have never had this amount of oil sales - as it was known that they sold six million barrels of oil at that time; and while, thank God, some work has been done, but that work is very little.

Highlighting failures; the enemy's psychological warfare to discourage the people Pay attention to this: the enemy propagates our failures, conducts psychological warfare, and emphasizes them; they exaggerate the failures many times more than they are. Of course, they do not show the advancements and improvements at all and do not refer to them, and deliberately conceal the advancements; this is so that they can discourage our youth, this is so that they can make our people pessimistic about the future; we must pay attention to this; but they are not afraid of lies. Of course, they exaggerate some things [but] in some cases, they lie; and some of our internal elements, out of ignorance - now some may also be malicious, but mostly out of ignorance - repeat and reflect the same words as them. We have these disarray; there are failures that must be addressed.

The necessity of strengthening the people's sensitivity to disarray and corruption Our people today are more sensitive to these disarray than at the beginning of the revolution. Today, the people are sensitive to corruption, more sensitive to class disparity than at the beginning of the revolution; this is not a bad thing, this is a very good thing; this indicates that the people are familiar with the ideals of the revolution and are pursuing those ideals, hence they protest; they protest against corruption, and wherever there is a fight against corruption, the people show interest and support and encouragement; wherever the movement is towards helping the weak, establishing justice and true justice, the people show support and backing; this is very important and indicates the people's inclination; this must be strengthened.

The necessity of compensating for failures and weaknesses with achievements We have a duty to compensate for failures and weaknesses with achievements. You see, this is an important point. We have achievements, including these very interested and innovative youth and ready-to-work human resources; these are among our achievements. We must compensate for failures with our achievements; the enemy says the opposite; the enemy brings forth failures, says to focus on failures, forget about achievements, abandon the path of the revolution; this is the enemy's talk. We, on the contrary, say that with our achievements, we must eliminate failures and weaknesses and see the multitude of achievements and, God willing, use them to help remove weaknesses.

Fortunately, the revolutionary spirit is alive in the people; as I mentioned, we had that extraordinary and truly unparalleled funeral. We have not seen such a funeral in the history of countries where millions of people mourn across the country; it was unprecedented; then also the subsequent events, and the 22nd of Bahman this year, thank God, showed the revolutionary enthusiasm of the people. Therefore, let us take advantage of the past to create the future and pave the way towards destiny.

The remedy for the chronic pains of the country lies in enthusiastic elections and the selection of the best I would like to say a word about the elections. Elections in our country are a very great opportunity; this opportunity must not be missed. Of course, the opponents of the Islamic Republic do not want the Islamic Republic to take advantage of this opportunity. Elections have these characteristics: they are a possibility for the nation, a great capacity for the progress of the country; they show the revolutionary enthusiasm of the people. When people participate in elections and show their revolutionary enthusiasm, this ensures the security of the country, this diminishes the enemy's greed in the country. The more enthusiastic the elections are, the more public support they receive, the greater the effects and benefits for the country and for the people themselves will be. And of course, we have said that the enemies do not want this; thus, whenever it gets close to elections - in all periods; we have had nearly forty elections in these years - they start, sometimes saying there is no freedom, sometimes saying there is interference, sometimes saying it is engineered, sometimes saying it is like this, to discourage the people from participating in the elections; this is the enemy's work. However, the reality is that elections are an honor for the country, an opportunity, a possibility, a reserve that if there is enthusiastic participation of the people, this will certainly help the future of the country. Of course, if this enthusiastic participation of the people is accompanied by a correct choice, which truly selects an efficient, faithful, motivated, and interested force to work, well, this is light upon light and will guarantee the future of the country. Now, I have many more words to say about the elections in the coming months, if I am alive; today I just wanted to say this one sentence. I want to say that the remedy for the chronic pains of the country lies in the enthusiasm of the elections and the public presence of the people and then the selection of the best, the selection of the appropriate personality in the presidential elections.

Action in response to action; the decision of the Islamic Republic regarding the JCPOA The last point is about the JCPOA. Well, I have spoken about the JCPOA, I have recently spoken about it, I have spoken a lot, we have absolutely stated the policies of the Islamic Republic regarding the JCPOA. Words are being said, promises are being made. I want to say today just this one word; to say that we have heard many good words and promises that in practice, those words and promises have been violated and acted against. Words are of no use, promises are of no use; this time only action, action; let us see the action from the other side, we will also act. The Islamic Republic will not be satisfied this time with words and promises and that "we will do this, we will do that" as it was in the past.

O God! Bestow Your blessings and grace upon the people of Tabriz, upon the people of Azerbaijan - East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Ardabil - and upon the entire nation of Iran. O God! Join the pure soul of the great Imam, who opened this path for us, with Your saints. O God! Be pleased with the pure souls of the dear martyrs. O God! Be pleased with the sacred existence of the Awaited One (may our souls be sacrificed for him) and make the prayer of that great one encompass us.

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