Statements on Meeting with Students and Students on National Day of Struggle Against Global Arrogance

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

Today, your warm breath, dear youth, in this Hussainiyah reminds us of the same epic and fervor that has supported, backed, and guaranteed the revolutionary movement of the Iranian nation throughout various years from the beginning of the revolution until today. The great blessing of God upon this country and the Islamic Republic system is the presence of youth; with clear motivations, steadfastness, reliance on logic, and pure hearts and intentions.

Our meeting today commemorates the events of the thirteenth of Aban, which have occurred in the country over the years—both before and after the victory of the revolution. There are three events: the exile of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) in 1963, the brutal massacre of students in Tehran in 1978, and the courageous movement of students in the seizure of the U.S. embassy in 1979; all three events are somehow related to the government of the United States of America. In 1963, Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) was exiled due to his protest against capitulation—which meant the preservation of the security of American agents in Iran and their judicial immunity; thus, the issue was related to America. In 1978, the American-dependent regime killed students in the streets of Tehran, and the asphalt of Tehran's streets was stained with the blood of our youth, in defense of the American-dependent regime; this too was related to America. In 1979, it was a counter-strike; that is, our brave and faithful students attacked the U.S. embassy and revealed the truth and identity of this embassy, which was a nest of espionage, and presented it before the eyes of the world. That day, our youth named the U.S. embassy a nest of espionage; today, after more than thirty years, the embassies of America in the closest countries to America—namely European countries—have become nests of espionage; that is, our youth were thirty years ahead of the world's historical calendar. This issue was also related to America. Three events, each in some way connected to the government of the United States of America and its relations with Iran. Therefore, the thirteenth of Aban was designated as the "Day of Struggle Against Arrogance."

What does arrogance mean? Arrogance is a Quranic expression; the word "arrogance" is used in the Quran; an arrogant person, an arrogant government, an arrogant group, refers to those individuals and that government that intends to interfere in the affairs of other people and nations, intervening in all their affairs to preserve their own interests; they consider themselves free, claim the right to impose upon nations, claim the right to interfere in the affairs of countries, and are accountable to no one; this is the meaning of arrogance. The opposite of this oppressive and tyrannical front are those who fight against arrogance; what does fighting against arrogance mean? It means, first and foremost, not submitting to this tyranny; the meaning of fighting against arrogance is not a complicated or convoluted matter; fighting against arrogance means that a nation does not submit to the interventionist and imposing power of the arrogant person or the arrogant government; this is the meaning of fighting against arrogance. Of course, God willing, in the future, I will have a detailed discussion with you young people, students, and pupils about arrogance and fighting against arrogance, which is not the time for now; briefly, this is the meaning of arrogance and this is the meaning of fighting against arrogance.

The Iranian nation, which considers itself to be anti-arrogance, does so because it has not submitted to the imposition of the American government. The American government is an arrogant government, claiming the right to intervene in countries, inciting wars, and interfering in the affairs of countries; today you see that this issue has gone beyond the boundaries of the countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, reaching Europe; they interfere in their affairs as well. The Iranian nation stood against this American arrogance and the interference it had and the tyranny it exercised and the dominance it had established over our dear country for years. The tyrannical regime of the monarchy was an American-dependent regime without internal backing; relying on America, they did whatever they wanted in Iran; they oppressed the people, usurped the rights of the people, discriminated among the people, and prevented the country from the growth and development that was its natural and historical right, in order to secure American interests in Iran. The Iranian nation stood up, revolted, and then cut off the roots of the arrogant powers in the country; unlike some other countries that confronted arrogance but left the work unfinished and suffered the consequences.

I saw in a country—whose name I will not mention—that had fought against the British and had ended years of oppression and tyranny by their struggle and had gained independence, that they installed a statue of an English general in one of their important recreational centers! We said, well, what is this? They had even named that center after that colonial arrogant who had committed thousands of atrocities there! Of course, they did not benefit from this caution and appeasement; that is, pressure on that country continued, and still continues; appeasement with the arrogant brings no benefit to any country. The Islamic Republic of Iran and the great revolution of this nation confronted American arrogance and did not leave the work unfinished; because they had felt the blows of America on their skin and flesh over many years; they understood who these people were and what they were.

This arrogant approach that the Americans have and has continued for decades has caused a sense of distrust and aversion towards the American government to arise among the nations of the world; this is not specific to our country; every nation that trusted America was harmed; even those who were friends of America. Now, in our country, Dr. Mossadegh trusted the Americans; in order to free himself from the pressure of the British, he resorted to the Americans; instead of helping Dr. Mossadegh, who had developed a good opinion of them, the Americans colluded with the British, sent their agent here, and orchestrated the coup of August 19. Mossadegh trusted them and suffered the consequences; even those who had a good relationship with America and trusted America were harmed. The relations of the former tyrannical regime with America were very close, yet the Americans' greed had also exhausted them; the same capitulation that we mentioned—judicial immunity for American agents—was imposed on them; they too had no backing other than America, and they were forced to accept it.

The meaning of capitulation is that if an American sergeant slaps an Iranian senior officer, no one has the right to prosecute him. If a petty American agent in Tehran assaults a noble Iranian man or a noble Iranian woman, no one has the right to prosecute him; the Americans say you have no right, we will resolve the issue ourselves; the humiliation of a nation cannot be greater than this. They imposed this on them, and they did not spare even their friends. After Mohammad Reza fled Iran and spent a short time in America, they expelled him from there; that is, they did not even remain loyal to him; this is how they are.

Nations and even governments are distrustful of America because of this behavior and approach that exists in American politics. Anyone who trusted America was harmed; therefore, today among nations, it can be said that America is perhaps the most despised power in the world. If a fair and healthy poll were conducted among nations, I do not think any government would receive a negative score as low as that of the American government; today, this is the situation of these people; you hear the words that Europeans are saying against Americans today. Therefore, the issue of struggle against arrogance and the national day of anti-arrogance is a fundamental issue, an issue arising from correct analysis and correct discourse. And you dear youth and millions of young people across the country, like you students and pupils, must have a correct analysis of these matters. Well, the youth of the early revolution did not need analysis and did not want analysis; everything was clear to them, because they had seen everything with their own eyes; the presence of Americans, the cruelty of Americans, the American-trained SAVAK; but today you must think, analyze, and pay attention; it should not just be verbal; it should be clear why the Iranian nation opposes arrogance; why it opposes the approaches of the United States of America; what this aversion stems from; this is something that today's youth must understand correctly and with research.

Well, regarding our current issues with America—which are the subject of discussion these days—I would like to mention a few points; there are questions in people's minds. First, I want to give an important and necessary reminder: no one should consider our negotiating team as a group that includes America—the so-called P5+1—as conciliators; this is wrong; these are the agents of the Islamic Republic of Iran, they are our own children, they are the children of the revolution; they are carrying out a mission. It is a difficult task that is upon them; they are working hard to fulfill the task assigned to them. Therefore, one should not weaken or insult a negotiator who is engaged in a task and is responsible for a process with some of the expressions that are sometimes heard—that they are conciliators, and the like; no, this is not the case. Also, keep in mind that this negotiation currently taking place with six countries—of which America is one—only concerns nuclear issues and nothing else. I also said at the beginning of this year in Mashhad that negotiating on specific topics is not problematic; however, I said I do not trust, I am not optimistic about the negotiations, but if they want to negotiate, let them; we will not suffer any harm, God willing.

An experience is at the disposal of the Iranian nation—that I will briefly mention—that will elevate the intellectual capacity of our nation; like the experience that took place in 2003 and 2004 regarding the suspension of enrichment, which at that time the Islamic Republic accepted the suspension of enrichment for a period during negotiations with the Europeans. Well, we fell behind for two years, but it turned out to be beneficial for us. Why? Because we realized that with the suspension of enrichment, there was absolutely no hope for cooperation from the Western partners. If we had not accepted that voluntary suspension—which, of course, had been imposed in some way, but we accepted it, our officials accepted it—at that time, some might have said, well, if you had made a slight concession, all problems would have been solved, Iran's nuclear file would have been normalized. That suspension of enrichment had the benefit for us that it became clear that with retreat, with the suspension of enrichment, with delaying work, and with halting many tasks, problems are not solved; the other side is pursuing something else; we understood this, and thus we began enrichment afterward. Today, the situation of the Islamic Republic is vastly different from that of 2003; back then we were bargaining over two or three centrifuges, while today thousands of centrifuges are operational. Our youth, our scientists, our researchers, our officials have worked hard and advanced the tasks. Therefore, we will not suffer any harm from the negotiations currently underway. Of course, as I said, I am not optimistic; I do not think that the results that the Iranian nation expects will come from these negotiations, but it is an experience and will increase the empirical backing of the Iranian nation; it is not a problem, but it is necessary for the nation to be vigilant. We firmly and strongly support our officials who are active in the diplomatic front, but the nation must be vigilant, know what is happening so that some of the enemy's paid propagandists and some of the unpaid propagandists—out of naivety—cannot mislead public opinion.

One of the tricks and falsehoods is to convey to public opinion that if we submit to the other side in the nuclear issue, all economic and livelihood problems will be solved; this is what they are propagating. Of course, foreign propagandists skillfully direct the narrative, and inside, some out of naivety and without any ill intent, and some truly with malice are propagating that if we concede in this matter and submit to the other side, all economic problems and the like will be solved; this is a mistake. Why is it a mistake? There are several reasons. I would like you dear youth—both you who are present in this session and our enlightened youth, our aware youth, our motivated youth, our students, our pupils across the country, whom I once said are the officers of the soft war—to think about these issues.

One issue is that America's enmity with the Iranian nation and the Islamic Republic is not at all centered around the nuclear issue; it is a mistake to think that America's dispute with us is over the nuclear issue; no, the nuclear issue is a pretext; before the nuclear issue was raised, these hostilities and oppositions existed from the very beginning of the revolution; even if one day the nuclear issue is resolved—suppose the Islamic Republic retreats; the very thing they want—do not think the issue will be over; no, they will gradually raise ten other pretexts: why do you have missiles? Why do you have drones? Why do you not recognize the Zionist regime? Why do you support resistance in the region, what they call the Middle East? And why? And why? And why? The issue is not that they have a dispute with the Islamic Republic over the nuclear issue; no, the issue is something else; the Iranian nation said no to the demands of America, the Iranian nation said America cannot do anything against us. They oppose the existence of the Islamic Republic, they oppose the influence and power of the Islamic Republic. Just recently, one of the American politicians and intellectual figures said—and his statement was broadcast, this is not a hidden issue—that whether Iran has nuclear weapons or not, it is dangerous. This person explicitly said that Iran's influence and power—in their own words, Iran's hegemony—in the region is dangerous; Iran, which today enjoys credibility, respect, and power. They are opposed to this; they want Iran to be a weak, sidelined, isolated, discredited, and disrespectful nation; the issue is not the nuclear issue. This is one point.

Another point is that for the economic issues of the country, all our efforts must be focused on internal matters; the progress and breakthroughs that are valuable must be based on the internal power of a nation. If a nation relies on its own power and capabilities, it will not be shaken by the frown of a country or the sanctions of a country; this is what we must resolve. All our discussions with officials—both past and present—are that for the resolution of the country's issues and problems, including economic problems, the focus must be inward. We have many capacities in the country; we must utilize the capacities of this nation, which include both human resources and natural resources, as well as geographical and regional advantages. Of course, we also support diplomatic activity. When we say that internal matters must be reformed, it does not mean that we should close our eyes, not have diplomatic activity, or not work with the world; why, diplomatic activity and presence is very necessary—those officials who are doing this work are part of the efforts—but the focus must be on internal matters. In the diplomatic arena, the country that is successful is the one that relies on endogenous power; that government can assert its position at the negotiating table and achieve its desired results, which is based on internal strength and capabilities; they take such a government into account.

One important point that must be noted here is that we have never been in a state of despair in facing our enemies over these years, and we will not be in the future. In the first decade of the revolution, especially in the early years, we were deprived of most material tools; we had no money, no weapons, no experience, no organization, no effective armed forces, no military tools; and our enemy—both the enemy that fought us on the battlefield, namely the Ba'athist regime of Saddam, and the enemy that stood behind him, namely America and NATO and the Soviet Union of that day—were at the peak of their power, at the peak of their capabilities. At that time, the American government under Reagan was one of the strongest and most capable governments in the political and military arenas in the world, and we were in poverty and destitution; yet they could not do anything against us.

Today, the situation has changed; today the Islamic Republic has weapons, money, knowledge, technology, manufacturing power, international credibility, and millions of ready-to-work youth, millions of talents; today our situation is like this; we are not at all comparable to thirty years ago. In fact, the situation on the opposing front is the opposite; at that time, the Americans were at the peak of their power, today they are not; one of the current American statesmen, a well-known figure, recently said—a statement they made, we did not say it—that America has reached a point where its friends do not respect it, and its enemies do not fear it. Recently, they have faced political problems; you saw the political disagreements among American politicians over issues related to their government budget, which led to the shutdown of the American government for sixteen or seventeen days, forcing eight hundred thousand employees to take unpaid leave; these are signs of weakness, these are signs of incapacity. In economic and financial matters, today they are facing the biggest problems; our problems are nothing compared to their problems.

Let me tell you, in 2001 or 2002—about ten or eleven years ago—American financial officials predicted and said that we will have fourteen trillion dollars in excess revenue in 2011 or 2012; pay close attention! In 2001, their prediction for 2011 and 2012 was: they said we will have fourteen trillion dollars in excess revenue in 2011 and 2012; now it is 2013, and they have nearly seventeen trillion dollars in deficit, not that they have excess revenue; that is, they made about thirty trillion dollars in mistakes in their calculations! This is their economic situation, this is their calculation situation. Such a situation exists today on the opposing front; the disagreements are many, as you can see; common interests have connected them—Europeans and Americans—but deep down they are at odds. The people of France are disgusted and repulsed by the Americans. In various matters, in the Syrian issue, when the Americans wanted to attack, they could not even get their closest government to cooperate with them in this matter; that is, the British also said we will not participate. This is while when they attacked Iraq, about forty governments cooperated with them; when they attacked Afghanistan, thirty-some governments cooperated with them. [Now] the Americans are in this situation, but we are in a very good situation. We have progressed, we have become powerful, our nation has become an aware nation; of course, they exert pressure. These pressures must be endured and overcome by relying on our own capabilities inside; this is a wise action that is being taken. Of course, we have stated, and we will repeat: with the efforts that the respected government and the officials of the country are making, we agree. It is a task, it is an experience, it is likely a useful action; they should carry out this work, if they achieve results, that is even better, but if they do not achieve results, it should mean that to solve the problems of the country, the country must stand on its own feet. We reiterate our previous recommendation: do not trust the enemy who smiles; we advise our officials, our children—those who are engaged in diplomacy, they are our children, our youth—this is our recommendation to them: be careful that the deceptive smile does not lead you to error, does not lead you to mistakes; see the subtleties of the enemy's work.

Today, the Americans have the most obligation to the corrupt Zionist regime; they have the most consideration for Zionist circles; they take their considerations into account; we see the situation. The powerful hands of financial and Zionist companies are so dominant over the American government and Congress and American officials that they are forced to take their considerations into account; we are not obliged to take their considerations into account. From the very beginning, we have said, today we say, and we will continue to say: we consider the Zionist regime an illegitimate and illegitimate offspring. It is a regime that has been established based on conspiracy, and it is maintained and protected based on conspiratorial policies. They have considerations; now why do they have considerations, this is another discussion; the money and power of the Zionists do their work, ultimately this misfortune leads them to be in trouble; they are forced to take these considerations into account; it is not just the Americans who are in this situation; many other Western politicians also have the same problem, they are also in trouble, [facing] problems. Therefore, our officials must pay attention, listen to the words; from one side, they smile, express interest, express a desire to negotiate, and from the other side, they immediately come and say: all options are on the table! Well, for what? What action, what mistake could they possibly make against the Islamic Republic? If they are serious in their work, they must control themselves; they must stop those who speak such nonsense. A wealthy American politician makes a statement that we must bomb a certain desert in Iran with a nuclear bomb and threaten; they should be made to regret such statements. A government that considers itself responsible for global issues and thinks it has a responsibility to deal with the nuclear issue of this country or that country, has no right to threaten a country in such a situation, in such an era. They must stop such nonsense.

In any case, our nation, thanks be to God, is an alert nation, our officials are also the officials of this nation, they are also alert, their attention is focused. Whatever is in the interest of the country and the officials of the country do, we support that work, we help them, we pray for them, but we also recommend, both to the people, to the officials, and especially to you dear youth to open your eyes and ears. Any nation that remains aware, alert, and does not fall asleep can achieve its lofty goals.

And we hope, God willing, that the prayer of the Awaited Savior (may our souls be sacrificed for him) will support you. The pure soul of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) will pray for you. The pure souls of the martyrs, God willing, will pray for you. And God willing, you youth will take over the country with your vibrant spirit, and with your innovation, it will be your turn, God willing, to reach the peaks.

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