Statements to Oil Industry Engineers and Workers

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

I am very happy that, thanks be to God, our visit today to this sensitive and valuable region of the country has culminated in this meeting with you dear brothers and sisters, the employees of this important industrial and technical complex, and part of the people residing in this area; with this visit, our tour comes to an end. I am very pleased to meet you dear brothers and sisters.

Fortunately, in every corner of the country and in every sector, signs of the intellectual and practical growth and elevation of our dear nation are evident. Bushehr province is among the most authentic and ancient provinces of this country and has tested people. Anyone familiar with the history of this region knows that the people of this long coastline of the Persian Gulf have greatly served their country, the independence of the country, and the dignity of the Iranian nation. At one time, the arrogant and aggressive powers, who understood the importance of this region of the world, intended to completely seize and control this wealthy area of the Persian Gulf. Those same colonizers who brought the Indian subcontinent to its knees and inflicted irreparable blows on its people, and in North Africa in another way, and in East Asia in yet another way, were unwilling to part with this region and cut their greed. At that time, the people of this long coastline, especially in Bushehr province and Hormozgan province, served greatly, stood firm, showed courage, and proved the dignity and steadfastness of the Iranian nation; this is a historical precedent for this region, and these things will never be erased from the memory of history.

Today is another era. The international oppressors and aggressors are thinking in another way about how to extend their hands to any point in the world they can and secure their illegitimate interests, even at the cost of destroying the identity and dignity of nations; as you can see in various corners of the world and especially in this region, they are doing so in recent years.

What has happened in Iran is precisely the opposite of the goals and ambitions of global arrogance. Here, a system based on the people, relying on hearts, faiths, and emotions has been established; with Islamic goals, with Quranic objectives, with the belief that "And to God belongs the might and to His Messenger and to the believers" (Quran 63:8), with this conviction and belief that no pressure or imposition can shake it; such a system; an Islamic system. This steadfastness, this resistance against the greed of foreigners angers the centers of global power. For thirty years, they have been expressing their anger in various ways, but with the will of the Iranian nation - which is based on the will of the Almighty God and with confidence in God's promise - the enemies have failed, and the Iranian nation has progressed day by day in the realms of advancement and elevation.

I have declared this year as the "Year of Economic Jihad." This means that the Iranian nation, at this point in time, is primarily engaged in jihad in the economic sphere. Today we came to closely visit this region. This region is an economic area that relies on production; and for the economy of a country, the most important part that can create sustainable prosperity is production; especially that part of the productive economy that relies on knowledge, that relies on science; this is the case here; it is economic, it is productive, it is scientific; it is knowledge-based. This is worthy of the Iranian nation. If one day the people of this region and the people of various parts of the country had to stand against the bullying and arrogance of the plundering and aggressive governments, today the form of resistance against those powers is more complex, more sensitive, and more diverse; it requires a complex and profound struggle.

Fortunately, our nation is familiar with the culture of struggle. We are not strangers to struggle. Our nation has been tested in the fields of jihad; both military jihad during the eight years of sacred defense; and political jihad throughout this time; and economic and scientific jihad, a tested nation. We are familiar with jihad. This jihad that we must undertake today - economic jihad - is not more difficult than the struggles that the Iranian nation has undertaken until today; but we must know what we want to do.

Economic jihad is not merely economic effort. Jihad has a special semantic burden. Not every effort can be called jihad. In jihad, confrontation with the enemy is assumed. A person makes an effort, but there is no enemy in front of him; this is not jihad. But when you want to make an effort, especially when an enemy stands face to face with you; this becomes jihad. Sometimes this jihad may take the form of combat, sometimes it may be financial jihad, sometimes it may be scientific jihad, sometimes it may be technical jihad; all of these are jihad; various types of jihad and struggle. If we want to find an equivalent for "jihad" in our contemporary literature, it becomes "struggle." Economic jihad means economic struggle.

Everyone is responsible. These faithful men, some of whom we saw today, and many of you are working in this complex and are among them, your work is jihad. The work being done in this vast industrial and economic region is a jihad. If the intention is for God, it becomes jihad fi sabilillah (jihad in the way of God). When a person strives for the exaltation of the word of truth, for the exaltation of the word of Islam, for the dignity of the Islamic community and the faithful and Muslim nation of Iran, this jihad becomes jihad fi sabilillah. Then in this effort, the blessings and greatness and status of jihad fi sabilillah exist.

I ask all the employees, specialists, and activists in this field - while thanking you - to earnestly consider your work as jihad fi sabilillah; do not feel tired and know that jihad fi sabilillah has the divine promise of victory. When you move for God and in the way of God, you will achieve victory. This year, all the various components of our nation, the country’s officials, the officials of various provincial sectors in different parts of the country, and all the people must undertake this effort for God. The Almighty God will also bless it. The Almighty God will certainly bless and assist that effort, that work, that intention and determination that is in this direction; just as in these thirty-two years until today, the Almighty God has helped us. Without divine will, it would not have been possible for a nation to stand against global arrogance.

In this region of rich gas resources, we have a partner; now I do not want to refer to it as a rival. When you look, you see that all those who are dissatisfied with the progress of the Iranian nation have gathered there, concentrated there; to assist that side and do whatever they can to obstruct the work of this side. This shows the meaning of jihad and struggle; that a person feels the enmity of the enemy and adversary in front of him. Every step you take in this work and similar work angers the enemy, makes them upset; whatever they can, they will obstruct. Whatever you need for this progress, they will try to focus on that and make your access to it difficult, make it hard.

What is the remedy? The remedy is to return and rely on oneself; to seek help from one’s own capabilities; this inexhaustible spring of human will and talent that, thanks be to God, exists in our dear Iran, in our people, in our youth.

There is much to say in this regard. Some of the points were also shared by the officials of this sector during this long visit, and we also made recommendations. One sentence is addressed to all the Iranian nation, and that is that in this economic jihad, everyone is a partner. In managing the economy of a nation, consumption is also a major pillar; proper consumption, good consumption, consumption free from extravagance and waste and squandering of wealth; this is what is always recommended.

Creating a culture of work and effort for God. Even if you are a teacher in a classroom, you can participate in this economic jihad; you teach this culture to this youth, to this human resource of tomorrow; this becomes economic jihad. In every sector you are in, you can participate in this jihad.

Helping to advance justice. This decade is for us a decade of advancement and justice. Advancement minus justice, from the perspective of Islam, is not advancement at all.

In this region of Assaluyeh - in these two important human and humanitarian centers of Assaluyeh and Nakhl Taqi - the people have needs. Helping to meet these needs is part of economic jihad; it is part of a great task. Today we had discussions with managers and officials of various sectors regarding the environment, polluted air, various problems, about these people. God willing, these issues must be followed up. The problems of the people must be solved. All of these are components of a vast and comprehensive economic jihad. With cooperation, solidarity, a sense of brotherhood, a sense of working for God, this nation can find its deserving place.

These obstinate enemies want to harm the Iranian nation by any means; also for the crime of supporting the truth, for the crime of independence, for the crime of not submitting to the bullying of the enemies; they want to impose on the Iranian nation and bully and strike. Against these enemies, with this unity of word, with this solidarity, with this cooperation, with this public struggle, we can stand and overcome them; just as the Iranian nation has overcome its enemies until today and has been able to secure its dignity; after this, it will continue to be so.

What we recommend to the esteemed officials of various sectors, particularly in relation to today’s visit to this sector, is to seriously pursue this direct line of relying on their inner and inherent strength and creating self-sufficiency from others; to know that this effort and activity is of divine attention and is jihad fi sabilillah; if it is with a divine intention - the intention of serving the people and serving the country is one of the divine intentions - and the Almighty God will bring this jihad to fruition. They should not abandon this line and direction; they should strive.

What I observed here today is encouraging. Of course, there are shortcomings; they must think about them, and they are. One feels that they are thinking about correcting the shortcomings. At the same time, the work that has been done is a very great task; and this shows that the Iranian nation can accomplish whatever it wills. This sense of capability in a nation is the greatest spiritual and moral asset for that nation; and our nation has this sense; its evidence can be observed in all sectors.

In this work, there are sectors where scientific work must be done. Regarding the issue of oil and gas, in addition to the technical sectors, we must certainly work on the legal and economic sectors - the rights of oil and gas, the economy of oil and gas - we must think and have scientific studies in this area. Our youth will be able to work in these areas and, God willing, will make progress. This wealth belongs to the Iranian nation. Gas is wealth, oil is wealth; but more important than these riches is the human force that is talented, interested, and capable of work. We have this wealth; that is the essence. If a nation has this human force, it can also extract its natural wealth and put it in the service of the nation; but if it does not have this, its natural wealth will also be in the service of others; it will benefit others more than it will benefit itself. Thanks be to God, we have this wealth.

Fortunately, the general atmosphere of the country is one of work; it is an atmosphere of effort; it is an atmosphere of solidarity; this is due to the blessings of the struggles that have been made before. Today, some families of martyrs from this region are also present in this gathering. We must certainly know that whatever success we achieve today is due to the blessings of the struggles of the martyrs and the blood of the martyrs and the sacrifices of the martyrs; the martyrs, the disabled, the veterans. Some went to the battlefield, offered their lives, and received the reward of sacrifice fi sabilillah; although the Almighty God has preserved their lives, and they are in the service of the revolution and the country. It is these sacrifices and struggles that have brought our nation to this dignity and capability today and have given it the opportunity to accomplish these great tasks.

We ask the Almighty God to increase the dignity, power, and progress of the Iranian nation day by day and grant us all the success to fulfill our share in this great collective work and to please the Almighty God with our actions.

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