Statements at the Ramadan Meeting with Officials and System Operators

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, Abu al-Qasim Muhammad, and upon his pure and chosen progeny, especially the remaining one of God on the earth.

I am very grateful to the Almighty God and truly pleased from the bottom of my heart that the Almighty God has once again opened our eyes to the formation of this important and exceptional meeting; it is important because the officials of various sectors of the country — both current officials and those who have previously held responsibilities — are present here, and a unified mindset can be observed and created among the system's operators in this country in this assembly; misunderstandings can be resolved in this meeting, [and] they can meet each other, talk together; it is a sign of the unity of political, social, and national activists and will have a beneficial and desirable reflection, God willing, in the public atmosphere and public opinion of the country. This meeting is an important meeting, a sensitive meeting.

I have prepared some points to present. First of all, I sincerely thank Mr. Raisi, our esteemed President, for providing a good report; such reports are necessary; not only for the people and public opinion but also for the officials of various sectors. One of our work's shortcomings is that very often, different sectors are unaware of each other's activities. When I once suggested organizing a tour for some officials in military and non-military sectors, it was truly the case; we occasionally need a tangible, visible report on the country's issues, the country's progress, and the actions taken, placed before everyone's eyes so that we can be informed. Well, his statements in this regard were very beneficial, thanks be to God. I will also present some remarks within the scope of his issues.

The first point I want to make is a spiritual matter, a reminder to myself and to you, and that is that the month of Ramadan is the month of remembrance, the month of reflection, the month of the divine light of remembrance shining upon hearts; let us not easily lose this. At no other time of the year are hearts as ready to receive the divine guidance, divine blessings, and divine mercy as they are during this month; this is the characteristic of the month of Ramadan; a month that has a night that is better than a thousand months: خَیرٌ مِن اَلفِ شَهر; these are important matters. It is a month in which "your breaths are glorification and your sleep is worship". It is the month of softening hearts and souls. This material life, especially the machine-like life, takes away the delicacy of our relationships, our inner selves, and our actions; like a wheel that needs lubrication to turn smoothly without harmful friction, remembrance and prayer in this month play such a role; it softens our hearts and souls through the recitation of the Quran, through daily prayers, through fasting, and through the Night of Decree. So, this first point is that remembrance places the heart in the presence of divine lights; let us keep this in mind.

It frees us from negligence. Negligence is a great calamity. In the blessed supplication of Abu Hamzeh, we read: "O my Lord! With Your remembrance, my heart has come to life, and with my supplication to You, the fear has been removed from me"; with Your remembrance, my heart found life; with my supplication to You, anxiety and fear were removed from me, and I was freed. The fact that there are many verses in the Quran — dozens of verses, perhaps nearly a hundred verses, which [of course] I have not counted — about remembrance indicates the importance of this truth in our lives, in our relationships, in our outcomes, and at the end of our path. The Almighty God says: "Remember God with much remembrance * and glorify Him morning and evening," indicating that remembrance is both necessary and abundant; abundant remembrance is necessary. Well, this is one aspect of the issue of remembrance that directs hearts and removes negligence. Another aspect of the remembrance of God is its impact on action. When the remembrance of God is achieved, it affects our actions. In a saying attributed to Amir al-Mu'minin [it is stated]: "Whoever fills his heart with continuous remembrance, his actions will be good in secrecy and in public"; continuous remembrance and being a constant rememberer will make our actions — both our hidden actions and what we do in our hearts, within our families, in our private rooms, and also the actions we perform in the social environment — good and virtuous.

Well, now we are the officials of the country; part of the ongoing work of the country, from execution and legislation to judiciary and guidance and defense and similar matters, is the responsibility of this assembly that you are present in, and we have all gathered here. What is our work? "Service to the people." What is our work? "Good governance of the country"; thus, "his actions will be good in secrecy and in public" applies to us. If we have the remembrance of God, it will affect our work in serving the people, which is our great responsibility before the Almighty God. This "service" is also seen in prayers. In the blessed supplication of Kumayl, it is stated: "I ask You by Your right and Your holiness and Your greatest attributes and Your names to make some of the times of the night and day filled with Your remembrance and connected with Your service;" remembrance and service come together. "And my deeds with You accepted until my invocations and my deeds all become one invocation and my state is in Your service forever;" again, "service"; see, it is all about service. What does "service to God" mean? God does not need our service; "service to God" means service to life, service to the people, service to the creation of God, service to advancing goals; this is our fundamental duty that has been repeated in prayers, it has been stated. What we call "doing good to the people" is part of this service to the people: "Indeed, God commands justice and good". Well, [in this regard] there is a narration from the words of Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) that I will also quote from Gharar al-Hikam; he says: "The most deserving of people for goodness is the one whom God has done good to and has extended his hand with power"; everyone should do good, everyone should be charitable, serve, but the one who is most deserving of this duty is the one whom God has given the power to work, like you. You are in charge; some in managing public opinion, some in managing people's affairs; this is the extension of the hand, this is your power. In the Islamic Republic, the Almighty God has given the faithful people the opportunity to serve the people according to the principles of Islam and according to the desires of Islam; this is the best opportunity. So, this is our most important task; it is the most significant source of our divine test; and the Almighty God tests us.

There was a time — that now most of you who are young do not remember those days — when the faithful people and the owners of religious and Islamic thought had the least executive movement in the country, they could not do anything, the work was in the hands of tyrants and their followers; there was a time like this; the Almighty God threw them out of these positions and placed you in their place. Prophet Moses said to the Children of Israel: "Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy and make you successors in the land, then He will see how you act"; the Almighty God has placed me and you here, we must pass the test. How do we act? They acted badly; how will we act? Therefore, another aspect of remembrance, another dimension of remembrance is service. The month of Ramadan is the month of remembrance, meaning it is the month of service.

As for the issues related to the administration of the country and similar matters, there are multiple issues, but the issue of the economy is a central issue. As you observed in the statements of the President, the main topic is "economy"; most of my discussion today will be about economic issues. Of course, there are other issues that if God willing, you do not get tired and we do not get tired, we will address at the end.

The economy is the first issue of the country, the most important issue of the country; the issue of people's livelihood, the tangible issue for all segments of the country. Well, this year's slogan is an important slogan, a sensitive slogan; of course, the slogans of previous years have generally been economic; however, the fact that we have set economic slogans does not mean neglecting cultural and social issues and the like; they are also important in their own right, but a disordered economy affects the culture of society as well; that is, the impact of the skewed and unbalanced economy of the country on social issues and cultural issues should not be overlooked. High inflation, for several consecutive years, is a very important matter; for several years, high inflation has been persistent. Well, this affects the distribution of income in the country and makes the distribution of the country's income unbalanced; some remain deprived, while others, now through various means, fill their pockets. From both sides, corruption will arise; both from poverty, cultural and social corruptions arise; and from that group that has been able to fish in these muddy waters, engage in illegitimate use, and consume unlawfully, corruption will arise from them as well. Inflation seems to be a purely economic issue, but one sees that it can affect the culture of the people, the thoughts of the people, the behaviors of the people, and the social issues of the country. Many social and cultural corruptions exist that if we follow their threads, we will reach these illicit funds and discriminatory benefits.

Well, now the issue is controlling inflation and growing production. Mr. Raisi rightly pointed out; sometimes we have been able to control inflation, but on the other hand, it has been accompanied by recession; this is detrimental to the country. It is not good for inflation to come down while recession prevails in the country's economy. The important thing is that we can control inflation without leading to recession, and production grows; and this is possible. When we say it is possible, it is not my statement, it is the statement of economic experts who tell us, prove it, argue, and provide evidence; we can accept their words. If efforts are made, good efforts, and [the work] is pursued with seriousness — which, thanks be to God, good work is being done, and I will mention some points — we can operationalize the slogan of "controlling inflation and growing production".

If we want this slogan to be operationalized, first, it is necessary for various devices and sectors of the country to accept the priority of this matter; this is the first.

"Accepting the priority" means what? It means that all efforts, all wills throughout the year — we have a year ahead of us — should focus on this central point. It should not be that we say a few words and write them on letterheads and promote them, then gradually it becomes old, marginalized, forgotten; no. Of course, this slogan is not just for one year; these slogans generally continue and must continue, but now until the end of this year, 1402, all efforts, both in legislation and execution, in the judiciary, and in various other sectors should focus on this central issue; that is, they should pay attention that this duty is a primary and central duty.

Giving priority has another meaning, and that is that all capacities of the country should be utilized for this work; we have many capacities in the country. Some of our facilities are hardware facilities; we have natural resources, geographical location, economic infrastructure — factories, devices — some are software facilities; we have creative human resources, motivated youth, scientific capacities, technological capacities, and new ideas. Many thinkers write letters to me, and I take the time to read many letters from individuals who are experts in these matters; of course, I am not the reference for action, I send them to the relevant agencies, but I read the letters. Honestly, sometimes one sees very good, very new ideas; well, these are the capacities of the country; all of these must be put in the service of controlling inflation and growing production. We have executive capacities, legislative capacities, judicial capacities, media capacities, experiences, and experienced elements; there are those who are seasoned, have worked, know, and are skilled; all of these must be utilized. We should use foreign communications; foreign communication is not just communication with America and four European countries; there are over two hundred countries in the world, each of which has a capacity; these foreign communications can be utilized for this [purpose]. This is another dimension of the meaning of priority.

Priority has another meaning — that we said to give priority to this issue — and that is that there should be no marginalization. Sometimes you see a good movement has started to control inflation, there is a law, the government is busy, it is executing, suddenly from one side, from one corner, a resolution arises that is inflationary and stops the work; these must be monitored. Sometimes political views, factional views intervene. For example, suppose that because someone disagrees with a certain person in the government or with the government itself, they throw obstacles in front of a good action that the government is undertaking; these must not happen. Giving priority means that everyone should truly give priority.

So, this important first point, that if we want this slogan to be operationalized, we must give priority to this slogan with the meanings that have been mentioned; it should not be that only the policy is announced. Now sometimes a policy is announced, a working group is formed, an order is given, but these are not enough; it must be pursued in the way that has been stated; now I have some words about following up that I will say. If this [issue] is given priority, by the end of the year, its tangible effects will be seen. First, experts will observe the economic indicators — including the production growth index that he mentioned is very important, or the investment index, or the inflation index, and the like — and these indicators will become clear; secondly, people will feel it in their lives; that is, they will feel a certain comfort to a degree; if, God willing, we pursue it and can operationalize this slogan.

Well, if we want this slogan to be operationalized, there are several requirements that I have noted and will present. The first requirement is that "various devices should help each other"; that is, the government in one way, the parliament in another way, the judiciary in another way should help each other; the law must be compatible with the needs of execution. If we want this work to be done, the cooperation of all is necessary. Therefore, all of you who are present here — both from the parliament and from the government, and from the judiciary, and from the armed forces — should truly implement the decisions; everyone should help each other so that the work progresses. This is one requirement.

The next requirement, which I think is very important, is "serious follow-up of decisions". I often emphasize this issue of follow-up in private meetings with esteemed officials; follow-up is very important. Sometimes very good decisions are made, but because they are not followed up properly, the decision remains unfulfilled. The same unfinished projects that he mentioned are due to lack of follow-up. For example, suppose a very good project has been decided in the parliament or in the government, the government has started to act, it should be completed within three or four years, [but] thirteen years have passed, and it has not been completed! Why? This indicates that it has not been followed up and has been abandoned; follow-up is very important. Let me give you an example that is current. Several large state-owned companies that have made good profits have promised the President to implement beneficial construction projects for the people in various sectors of the country; the President has asked them, and they have committed to implement certain projects. A few weeks ago, I asked him where it had reached, what they had done? They brought a report to him, and he brought it to us; we looked at the report and found it unconvincing; that is, the work that should have been done has not been done; some work has been done, but what is the main and central point that serves the people and brings the benefit of the work to the people has not been realized. So, one requirement has become "following up". Work must be followed up; esteemed officials must follow up the work, which primarily must be done in the executive branch.

Another requirement is stability in economic policies and decisions. Constantly making changes in our monetary policies, in our financial policies is very detrimental to the country; it is very detrimental. It creates uncertainty, makes the entrepreneur hesitant, and makes those who want to invest and become entrepreneurs hesitant. Now we are also seeking foreign investment; we tell foreigners to come and invest; anyone who can and is willing should come and invest, they will benefit, and we will benefit; domestic investors, even more so. May God have mercy on the late Asgaroladi! Years ago, there was a meeting here, he spoke and said you want foreigners to come and invest, foreigners look at domestic investors; these are — in his words — the showcase of the system; they want to see how you treat domestic employers and domestic entrepreneurs, then if they see you treat them well, they will come. This is a correct statement. Changing policies, shifting orientations, is very damaging. Therefore, one of the most important discussions is stability in monetary and financial policies and the like.

One of the most important requirements for implementing this slogan is involving the people; this is a determining issue, a very important issue. We have acted weakly in this [area]; over these many years, we have honestly acted weakly. If we can, not in words that we have constantly said, [but] in action — which I will briefly explain — involve the people, production will certainly grow. What will definitely create production growth is the presence of the people in production; it should be done by the people in various sectors, from small and minor productions to large productions. This very production growth will also affect controlling inflation; that is, it will also have an effect on that.

Well, it cannot be done with words and slogans; merely saying to the people, "Come and participate," does not work; this statement has no meaning; it has no practical outcome to tell the people to come and participate. How will they participate? Where will they participate? The ground for participation must be prepared.

One of the good experiences is the knowledge-based companies; this is a good experience. Of course, it should not be limited to this — which I will explain — but this was a good experience. A mechanism was created for knowledge-based companies that allowed talented, elite, capable, and motivated individuals to come and establish thousands of knowledge-based companies, raising production, helping; these companies had a significant impact and, of course, should be increased. This knowledge-based approach to work requires planning. Which sectors should become knowledge-based? For example, suppose the oil sector or the agricultural sector should become knowledge-based; how? With what plan? Who can enter this work? This requires a plan and program that should be prepared and announced to the people who have the ability, are interested, and want to participate in this work. We have a high capacity in terms of educated young human resources; thanks be to God, we have many educated young people ready to study; many of them are engaged in jobs that do not match their fields of study, but they are busy because they have not been provided with work that matches their field.

If we can design this correctly, this problem will be resolved. The roadmap for knowledge-based economy and its operational program should be prepared by the esteemed officials in the government, inform the people, and prepare the ground for their participation; just as I mentioned, it should be specified which sectors are prioritized for becoming knowledge-based and what the methods of becoming knowledge-based are; these should be specified and communicated to the people.

Of course, the participation of the people that I mentioned is not limited to these areas; it is not that participation is only within the scope of knowledge-based companies. We must do something so that people can, all those who have the energy, have the ability to work, are in the so-called working range, can do something that helps their lives, improves their livelihood, and, in common terms, makes their table more colorful, which is the first principle of the resistance economy policies. Measures should be taken to ensure that low-income classes can increase their income through this means. Then the empowerment of the weak classes will be achieved in this way; that is, a complete roadmap should be created in this regard, and it can be created; that is, the planning organization and similar organizations in the government can sit down and design and specify how the various segments of the people, the weak classes of the people, can cooperate in economic activities. The best way to establish justice in the economy is this. The fact that we emphasize the issue of justice, which is the foundation of the economy in Islam, is based on justice — "so that people may stand for justice" — will be established through this way; we can provide the opportunity for everyone to work and earn income.

I am aware that some agencies, for example, in remote areas of the country, very far from Tehran, for example in villages, have gone and done some work, and have been able to sometimes revive families, for example, by having a few heads of sheep — now these very small examples are like this — revive a family with, for example, a few heads of sheep or in some places in Iranshahr where we were, with goats — special goats that are there — and similar things have been revived. From here to very large works that can develop a city, a region. Well, therefore, these requirements exist. If we want this slogan to be operationalized, these several requirements that I have mentioned exist. Of course, there are more than these, [but] now the situation of the meeting and so on did not allow me to go further. Esteemed officials, thinkers, those who are thoughtful and careful in these matters can expand on these, work more on them, think about them. These are the requirements for realizing this slogan.

In the matter of the economy, there are several key recommendations that I will briefly mention so that officials pay attention to them. At the top of these recommendations is the fight against corruption; fighting corruption has been present in the slogans of the esteemed President during the elections and after the elections, and we all truly believe in this. Fighting corruption is a necessary task; of course, it is a very difficult task. A few years ago, I issued a detailed statement regarding this issue, there I said the danger of this — I think this was the expression — is like a seven-headed dragon, threatening a person from all sides; therefore, in confronting corruption, one must enter with all their being. Corruption discourages people, makes them hopeless, reduces the inclination towards integrity in individuals. When someone sees that a certain person has filled their pockets through illegal and wrongful means, they too become tempted. Corruption is a contagious disease, a very dangerous disease, and truly leads to the destruction of society. Fighting corruption is necessary. Without hesitation, without consideration, one must fight corruption wherever it exists; and this is at the top of the important tasks that are necessary in economic matters.

The next issue is financial discipline. Financial discipline primarily involves the structural reform of the budget; when we first held this meeting of the esteemed heads of the branches to [discuss] the economic issue in the previous government, one of the important goals we announced and was documented and communicated was the reform of the budget structure; which, well, has not yet been fully accomplished. The issue of budget structure reform is very important; this [leads to] financial discipline. And one of the important parts of financial discipline is that one must definitely avoid financial commitments that do not have reliable sustainable resources. The audience of this statement is primarily the parliament; [the assessment of] unreliable and unstable financial resources against definite expenditures; well, this creates a lack of discipline and undoubtedly causes many problems.

We must practice thrift; one of the important things in financial discipline is to practice thrift. We must learn to be thrifty. Unfortunately, this is our national social problem; we waste, we have a lot of waste. One observes that in some countries, their thrift is very good and desirable; both the general public and officials, and various government agencies. In the words of Saadi: When your income is low, spend less For they say the sailors have a song If rain does not fall on the mountains In a year, the Tigris will become a dry river When one has low income, there is an income problem, one must practice thrift. Now even when income is high, one must practice thrift; that is, not wasting money is always the case, especially when income is low. Therefore, we are experiencing waste in various sectors; this must be monitored; for example, unnecessary trips, useless gatherings, and various agencies that do things, buy things, and do things like this.

The next issue, which is also very important in the economy — which this is the recommendation of experts to us and they repeatedly say this — is productivity. In the sixth program — which had the approval of the parliament and was a solid law; which was later extended, this year it has also been extended a bit — the economic growth of the country was set at eight percent; it was specified that one-third of this growth should come from productivity.

When one looks at these past years, one sees that not only was one-third of the growth not achieved through productivity, meaning productivity has not increased and has not grown the economy, but the level of productivity is very, very low. The figures are available; now they have been given to me, I do not want to give statistics and figures here, but the level of our productivity in terms of water is less than most countries in the world; in terms of energy, our productivity is very, very low. A few years ago, I also mentioned in my first speech of the year that the energy intensity in our country is apparently several times that of developed countries; that is, high consumption and low output. This is also an issue.

In economic matters, another recommendation that I present is the logical relationship of the responsible agencies with large state-owned companies. We have large companies that belong to the government; their capital belongs to the government, and their income also belongs to the government; the relationship of the government with these must be regulated; the relationship of the government with these companies must be regulated. Some good and active managers in these companies must be approved and supported. In the private sector, it is the same; some active and good managers are there, some of them came here a few months ago, [and] some of them spoke, reported; they provided tangible, visible reports, that were filmed and in front of our eyes; they provided clear and indisputable reports, they have done good work. In my opinion, one of our duties, especially the duties of the executive branch and the government, is to support these active and good managers. The best support that can be given to an active and entrepreneurial manager is to be able to provide a market for their product — whether a foreign market or a domestic market — give them competitive power, help them improve quality. In some of our products, the quantity of our work is good, but our quality is low; well, this cannot compete in the world, nor can it compete in domestic markets. We must help; both support them in preparing the market, developing the market, expanding the sales market, and for the issue of quality and competitiveness, we must help them. Of course, these managers I mentioned have the characteristic that in the hard economic war of these past years, they have been able to work, they have been able to stand, they have been able to advance the country in some sectors; therefore, they must be helped and supported; [but] they also have responsibilities, especially the government officials. Government managers must specify what their performance and role in the overall economic policy of the country is; this must be specified; that is, a certain large company, which also belongs to the government, its raw materials are also domestic — we have several such large companies that are large, profitable, with domestic raw materials — that its product price is aligned with the telegram dollar, [that is] the fake dollar prices that are directed by the enemy, why? Why do you give sovereignty to the dollar? Why do you strengthen the rival against the rial? One of our major duties is that we do not strengthen the rival of the rial domestically.

Americans, once — forty or fifty years ago — to strengthen the dollar in their country, bought gold, which was the rival of the dollar, from the people at a high price and collected it so that gold would not be in the hands of the people, so that the dollar would gain character in America; [but] we are constantly creating rivals for our rial! Truly, one of the problems of our country is the issue of various sectors of our economy hanging on the dollar. I said in Mashhad; [that] some countries have separated themselves from the dollar and conduct their transactions through other means; even they have cut their connections with SWIFT; they have also cut their connections with SWIFT, their situation has improved; now there are countries whose situation has improved.

Therefore, the large company belonging to the government must specify what its role is in controlling inflation this year, what role it plays in controlling inflation, and how it behaves in the overall economic strategy of the country. This pertains to the managers of state-owned companies and the private sector that we said truly must support good managers, managers who have helped the economic situation of the country in difficult times. Conversely, there are those who have had a destructive role in the monetary system of the country and in the financial system of the country; we must also deal with them without hesitation. Some unhealthy credit institutions, some private banks, buy property, buy land, overdraw from the central bank, which itself causes inflation and various problems; we must confront them.

The next point, which is also very necessary, is the predictive power of the planning system. Sometimes we face shortages in some necessary goods; we must be able to predict this in planning; that is, the economic planning agency of the country — the responsible agency — must have the predictive power that such a shortage may arise. If we do not predict, we suddenly face this shortage at a critical point; then what do we do? We hastily and impulsively import that good from abroad, breaking the back of domestic production; if this predictive power is not there, [a situation] like this arises. This is also very important. Shortages in any sector should not be allowed to reach a critical state; as soon as a shortage is felt — now, for example, in terms of meat, chicken, rice, or anything else — that it is felt that a shortage may arise, the capacities of the people and the public capacities should be utilized in advance, and they can be utilized, and the capacities should be mobilized to solve the issue and not let it reach a critical point.

Another point that I will mention here is that there are some key actions that can grow the economy, that can even cause an economic leap; these should be identified by the responsible agencies. Now I have noted two or three examples that came to my mind.

One is the issue of the blue economy, which has recently been reported to us and repeatedly proposed; it is correct. The sea is a center of blessing, and fortunately, we have a wide range of access to the sea; we have the sea in the south of the country and in the north of the country. Economies based on the sea are very blessed economies; this is one; we should pay attention to this. It has requirements [that must be] adhered to, followed up, and pursued.

One is the issue of the north-south corridor, which has been talked about in the country for a long time and is correct; this must be implemented. Now, countries are competing to pass international trade routes through their own territories. This country wants to do this through its own territory, that country wants to do this through its own territory. We are in a sensitive position; our location is very sensitive geographically; that is, in this region, there may not be any country that has such an excellent position. Our position is distinguished. We should develop the north-south corridor; of course, there are other routes [such as] east and west, [but] the most important is this. We should pursue the north-south corridor, which also has volunteers; there are foreign governments that can cooperate in this regard; this should be pursued. This is one issue; or the blue economy.

One issue is the revival of mines, which now the President has said that work has been done regarding mines [that] I, of course, was not aware of; well, this is very good, this is truly a good news. We are very rich in terms of mines. Once, here in this meeting of the operators, years ago, based on statistics — statistics that had been given to me and were accurate — I said we are one-hundredth of the world's population, our sensitive mines are mostly more than one-hundredth; two-hundredths, three-hundredths, five-hundredths, and so on; that is, in terms of mines, we are very rich; in terms of diversity of mines and volume of mines and such things. This issue of mines.

But the issue of housing is the same. Housing is one of the entrepreneurial and wealth-generating activities for the country. Now, the aim [is] that these should also be taken into account. In the government, fortunately, there are individuals whose economic understanding and economic knowledge are very good, and we must truly use them and listen to them and learn from them; there are many individuals who now sometimes their experts also provide us with reports; other experts [also the same], we also present some things. These are the details that must be done. This is regarding the economy.

There are two or three other issues that I must quickly mention. The first issue is the global transformations. I mentioned some time ago that the world is undergoing an important political transformation; that is, the state of global order is changing, which now this statement is being heard from various places, it is being repeated. Today, I want to say that this global transformation is fortunately in the direction of weakening the front of the enemies of the Islamic Republic; this is an important matter. First, transformations are happening very quickly; very rapidly; secondly, with the characteristic I mentioned, [that is] in the direction of weakening that front; these transformations have been like this so far. Well, what does this require? It requires that we increase our initiatives in foreign policy; we must increase our initiative, movement, activity, and so on and take advantage of the opportunity.

Now I said that the opposing front in this order is weakening, which has examples [that I will now mention]. Well, one of the most important opponents of ours at the global level is the United States. Obama's America was weaker than Bush's America; Trump's America was weaker than Obama's America; this gentleman's America is weaker than Trump's America. How do we say it is weak?

First, within America, a bipolarity arose two or three years ago during the elections; this bipolarity still remains in its place with intensity; this is weakness! This is very important. In the recent elections a few months ago in their congress, it became clear that this bipolarity still exists with intensity.

America has not been able to resolve the political crisis of the Zionist regime — which is very important for it — this is America's weakness. The Zionist regime is very important for America. You see what condition the Zionist regime is in, which I will also refer to later; America has not been able to resolve this.

America announced that it wanted to create a united Arab front against Iran, against the Islamic Republic, to act united against Iran; today the opposite of what they wanted is happening, and the communications of the Arab group with Iran are increasing.

America wanted to resolve the nuclear issue through pressure and sanctions according to its own program, it could not; this is America's weakness. It made a lot of effort — made noise [through] media, non-media; politics, sanctions, etc. — [but] it could not resolve the nuclear issue according to its own program.

America started the Ukraine war — which now this is my claim, there are many reasons [for it], many people in the world believe the same; of course, the Americans do not accept it, but they started the Ukraine war — [but] now this war has caused a distance to arise between America's European allies and America, and the distance has increased. Because they are taking the hit, the Europeans are taking the hit, America is reaping the benefits; this has created a distance; this is America's weakness.

America considers Latin America its backyard, [but] now in many Latin American countries, anti-American governments are coming to power. America wanted to make Venezuela disappear; they appointed a government to replace the current government of Venezuela, which is opposed to America, they created a fake president, gave him an army, money, weapons, created a struggle for two or three years, and in the end, they could not; these are all signs of weakness.

The dollar is weakening in the world; many countries are converting their dollar transactions to national currencies or other currencies; these are all signs of weakness. When we say that the anti-Islamic front has weakened [these are the reasons]. So, America, which is actually at the head of enmity with the Islamic Republic, these are signs of its weakness. There are other signs as well, but now I will pass.

And as for the Zionist regime — which is another enemy of ours — in its seventy-five years of existence, it has never faced such horrific troubles as today. First, "political instability"; in four years, they changed four prime ministers; party coalitions are still not properly formed and dissolve. They form coalitions, then after a short time, the coalition dissolves. The parties that have been formed or are being formed gradually become dissolved, they become so weak that it is like dissolution. There is a severe bipolarity throughout the fake regime; [if] you observe now — the Palestinian issue is separate — there is a bipolarity among themselves; this mass protest of one hundred thousand and two hundred thousand and more in Tel Aviv and in various other cities is a sign of this. Now, they may fire a few missiles at a place, [but] this does not compensate for that issue. They are truly experiencing political weakness and instability. It has been announced that soon the number of those leaving Israel, the Jews leaving, will reach two million [people]. They announced this; that is, they said that in the near future, about two million will leave [the occupied territories of] the Zionist regime. Their officials repeatedly and continuously warn that collapse is near; their president says it, their former prime minister says it, their national security chief says it, their defense minister says it; all of them say that our collapse is near; we will not reach eighty years of age. We said, "You will not see the next twenty-five years," they hurried, they want to disappear sooner!

The power of Palestinian groups has increased compared to the past; it cannot be said that it has increased several times, [but] perhaps it has increased dozens of times. A report reached us that the Palestinians in the occupied territories carried out 27 operations in a 24-hour period; they are active everywhere in Palestine; in Jerusalem, in the West Bank, in the 47 territories, they are active everywhere. That Oslo Palestine — remember what Yasser Arafat and others did in the Oslo Accord, what a disgrace they created for Palestine — has reached the Lion's Den, [meaning] the Palestine of "Lions"! It has changed so much. The movement of the Palestinians is like this. Well, conversely, as they have weakened, the resistance front, thanks be to God, is gaining strength, which is exemplified by the Palestinian groups I just mentioned. This was a matter we wanted to present.

The next issue is the enemy's conspiracy against our internal country; there have been conspiracies, and there will be conspiracies. In the riots of last autumn, they used the issue of women as an excuse, raised a clamor; behind the issue were the enemy's espionage agencies, [that is] the Western governments; those countries that are severely accused in the issue of women. Recently, it was announced in a European country that the police said women should not go out alone at night, they should go with men! That is, there is no security for women. In some centers and camps where men and women are present, women do not dare to go to the restroom at midnight. In their military forces, it is one way, in the streets and markets, it is another way. And then, in the issue of women, they criticize the Islamic Republic, which holds the highest dignity for women!

In a European country, a Muslim woman with a hijab was killed in court, in front of the police and in front of the court! In front of their eyes. The woman had been beaten, she had complained to the court, the court was formed, in the court itself, the same previous assailant came and hit her, and the woman died and became a martyr! This is how they treat women. A number of people inside were deceived — in my opinion, most were deceived — following the foreign enemy and the treacherous expatriates who incited them, they shouted for women's freedom. Here too, they made a clamor; instead of logical reasoning and correct and sound arguments that could be listened to, answered, and discussed, they made a clamor.

Well, the issue of women is not just about covering; women have issues of education, employment, marriage, political activity, presence in social issues, presence in high-level government management; these are all women's issues. In which of these does freedom not exist in the country? In which of these has the Islamic Republic interfered in women's affairs and prevented their freedom? There are so many female students, so many female university students, so many women in high government positions, so many women forming large gatherings, this active presence of women in effective gatherings during the struggles, before the victory of the revolution, after the victory of the revolution, in the war, behind the front, until today in demonstrations, in marches, on the 22nd of Bahman, on Quds Day; where in the world do women perform so many activities that Iranian women and ladies proudly and honorably carry out?

In the issue of covering, well yes, the issue of hijab is a legal and religious limitation; there the limitation is not governmental, it is legal and religious; unveiling is religiously and politically forbidden; it is both religiously forbidden and politically forbidden. Many of those who unveil do not know this; if they knew who is behind this policy of lifting the hijab and fighting against the hijab, they would certainly not do it; I know. Many of these are people who are religious, who are devoted, who are Ramadan observers, who cry and pray, [but] they do not realize who is behind this policy of lifting the hijab and fighting against the hijab. The enemy's spies, the enemy's espionage agencies are pursuing this issue. If they knew, they would certainly not do it. In any case, this issue will certainly be resolved. Imam, in the first weeks of the revolution, decisively and mandatorily stated the issue of hijab; this was one of the early actions of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified). Now it will also be resolved, God willing. However, everyone should be aware that the enemy has entered this work with a plan and a program, and we must also enter with a program and a plan; unregulated and unplanned actions should not be taken. Officials should have programs and they do; God willing, this work will be pursued with a plan. This is also one issue.

The next issue — perhaps the last issue or the one before the last — is the elections at the end of the year. This election is very important. Elections can be a manifestation of national strength. If elections are not held properly, it shows the weakness of the country and the weakness of the nation; it shows the weakness of the government, the weakness of the officials, the weakness of the people, and the weakness of the country. The weaker we become, the more the enemy's attacks and pressures will increase. If you want to prevent enemy pressure, we must become strong. One of the important tools of the country's strength is this election. The officials who are related to this from now on — of course, I know they have been following up — should specify the strategy for participation, the strategy for election security, the strategy for election integrity, and the strategy for election competition; we should have a good, healthy election with high participation, God willing, at the end of the year.

The last issue is the issue of media, which is important. I have spoken about the media many times, and I will say it again. The black portrayals of the enemy, the enemy's defamations, the conspiracies against the power of the country that are carried out by the enemy in cyberspace and similar areas must be exposed; this is the responsibility of the media. Well, the national media, thanks be to God, is in the hands of motivated and faithful individuals; they should strive to neutralize the enemy's efforts in this regard.

O Lord! For Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, place what we have said and heard in Your way and for Your sake. O Lord! Make us act according to what we believe and what we express; honor the Iranian nation; grant victory to the Iranian nation over its enemies; grant success and support to the faithful, motivated, and loyal officials. O Lord! In this month, grant us the success of remembrance; grant us the success of good deeds and charity to the people; make us examples of "Indeed, God commands justice and good". O Lord! Grant us the success of reciting the Quran, reflecting on the Quran, benefiting from the Quran, and seeking light from the Quran; unite the great Imam with his saints; make him pleased with us; make the heart of the holy guardian of the era pleased with us; make us among the soldiers of the guardianship; unite our dear martyrs with the martyrs of Karbala.

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