Statements in Meeting with Officials of the System

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

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

Welcome, dear brothers and sisters, esteemed officials! God willing, may divine blessings encompass all of you and the entire nation of Iran, and may the month of Ramadan truly be a blessed month for all of you.

The month of Ramadan is the month of piety; all of us who are responsible need to observe piety more than others. I would like to say a few words on this matter. In the noble verse, "O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous," the phrase "that you may become righteous" implies hope; it means there is hope that this will happen. Hope does not apply to God, the Almighty; God is aware of secrets and hidden matters, and everything is known to Him, so the intention is that this month of Ramadan, this divine legislation, is established to create a foundation for the promotion of piety; the address is to the general public, meaning that piety should be promoted among you, the people. Therefore, Ramadan is the month of promoting piety.

What does piety mean? Piety, as commonly translated, means "to be cautious" or, in our usual expressions, "to take into consideration"; for example, it is said that someone takes the consideration of another into account. To be cautious means this. To be cautious, to take into consideration, is the meaning of piety. "Fear God" means to take God into consideration, to be cautious of the Almighty. A straight path has been shown to you in this great movement of human life, which is fraught with difficulties. Imagine a land where there are mines in various corners, and a path is opened, and they say this path is the path of safety, the path of security, go this way; this is the straight path. To take God into consideration means to be careful not to deviate from this path, not to go astray, lest you become entangled and face problems.

If you follow this path, then good results will come to you, which God has repeatedly stated in various verses of the Quran: "Fear God that you may receive mercy"; divine mercy; "that you may succeed" - success means salvation - if there is piety, salvation will come to humanity; "that you may be guided" - which is mentioned in some verses - piety leads to guidance; when you practice piety, difficulties and detours will recede from before you, and the right path will be illuminated for you. If you have piety, it will lead to discernment: "He will make for you a criterion"; discernment means the ability to distinguish; this is very important. We need discernment in all matters of life to distinguish the right path from the wrong, the truth from falsehood; with piety, discernment is created, the ability to distinguish is established. Another thing: "And whoever fears God, He will make for him a way out" - "way out" means breaking through dead ends - if there is piety, there is no dead end, there is no dead end in your work. In all areas, if you have piety, if you observe it, that is, if you have the caution and consideration of the Almighty, there will be no dead end in front of you. And it also gives insight. These are the Quranic promises for piety. "And who is more truthful than God in statement?" No one, no promise-maker is more truthful than the Almighty; when the Almighty makes a promise, it is fulfilled, it is certain, and there is no doubt about it.

Well, on the sidelines of the invitation to piety in the Quran - which from beginning to end we have been repeatedly invited to piety; this effective and guiding truth - and in contrast to this, the piety from other than God has also been mentioned, which I believe is in Surah An-Nahl: "And to Him belongs the religion, and do you fear other than God?" What does fearing other than God mean? It does not mean considering one's father or mother, which is good, or considering a believing brother, which is very good; it means the non-divine powers, the anti-divine powers. So when we adhere to piety, we fear the power of God, we do not fear the powers other than God; "we do not fear" means we do not take their consideration into account. It does not mean we should not be aware of them; yes, we should be aware, but we do not fear them, we do not think that our life, our happiness, our future, our destiny is in their hands; this is the essence of piety. You see; all these are the paths to victory for a nation; that is, in an Islamic community, when there is piety, and this kind of thinking and this kind of action, naturally flourishing occurs, movement occurs, advancement, elevation, and then "to manifest it over all religions" will happen, which has been repeatedly mentioned by the Almighty in the Quran.

Piety also has a wide scope; it exists from the privacy of your heart, where you do not allow desires to enter your heart, do not allow doubt and suspicion about the truth to enter your heart, keep the desires of the self away from yourself; that is, these problems we are facing. Last night, the television aired a program about Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified). Truly, the Imam was wise in the true sense of the word; when he spoke, wisdom flowed from his heart - of course, we were in that session, but it was a very necessary reminder - he used to say a sentence that "the month of Ramadan causes us to distance ourselves from desires, especially spiritual desires; spiritual desires are harder; power-seeking, fame-seeking, these are spiritual desires. The effort to strengthen oneself in all fields of life is that spiritual desire; the material and ethical desires are preserved in their own place. Piety starts from here and extends to the social sphere; in war, piety exists, in political activities, piety has meaning, in economic activities, it is the same. Then you and I, who are among the officials in the country and in various management positions, our actions, our words, our deeds, our intentions, our decisions are connected to the fate of the people; and here is where piety becomes important. The reason I said piety is more important for me and you than for ordinary people is because of this; we must be vigilant, we must exercise piety. The government worker is afflicted with a close relationship with the rights of the people; if he is unpious, the rights of the people will be trampled, and then it will no longer be possible to compensate; now, a personal wrongdoing and oppression against oneself can be repented for, and then it can be compensated in some way, but when the rights of the people are trampled, how can one compensate for that?

Consider this as a managerial commitment; you who want to appoint someone to a position, to entrust a task to someone, consider having this quality, that is, the quality of piety and commitment to matters related to the people, as part of the qualifications for management. One of the qualifications for management is to see if this person has piety, that is, whether the task you entrust to him will be carried out with trust or not. Well, if this is the case, then God will be the most important factor in all our decision-making; the meaning of working for God will be this way; then your work becomes worship. One of the advantages of working for the Islamic government and the Islamic state is that if work is done for God, it becomes worship; that signature you make, that paper you write, that word you say, becomes an act of worship. In the supplication of moral excellence, there is this sentence: "And employ me in what you will ask me about tomorrow" - which is the twentieth supplication of Sahifa Sajjadiya and is a very good supplication, and I recommend reading it more; friends do read it, but read this supplication more - tomorrow in the Hereafter, they will hold us accountable for why we did not do such and such a task. Some tasks that we should not do, we do - well, we all know this - some tasks that we should do, we do not pay attention to, we become negligent, we become lazy, we consider this and that, and we do not perform those tasks; they will ask us.

One of the places where piety must show itself is here; one is the issue of observing public funds, one is the issue of self-restraint against the rebellion of the self; accumulating wealth, ethical problems, the desire for a luxurious and ostentatious life; these are things that we, the officials of the Islamic Republic, must be very careful about. "And you dwelled in the dwellings of those who wronged"; well, if we govern in the same building where that tyrant ruled, and act like him, then we are no different from him. Our method must be different from the method of the servants of Satan and the followers of Satan.

There are two types of paths and doctrines in reaching power. In all those who attain power, this meaning exists: one type is that of the people of the world, who are waiting to gain power, to attain governance to reach their personal desires; that is, a person strives to reach the presidency, because in the presidency, conditions are created for a better life; that is, for him, attaining power is a means to reach the desires of the self, to reach wealth and desires and things that the self craves; this is one way that most of the people of power have followed; because they are mostly people of the world, they are after the world, and power for them is for the world, and the results of that power are nothing but worldly things. This is one way of conduct and way of life for those who attain power; another is the way of the prophets: it is narrated about the Prophet that he "sat like a servant and ate like a servant"; that is, with the greatness of his position, he did not consider any distinction for himself in his eating, his companionship; or Amir al-Mu'minin says: "Beware that your Imam has sufficed himself with his two garments and his food with his two loaves"; this is the life of Amir al-Mu'minin; this is also an example. Of course, this does not mean that you and I should act like the Prophet or like Amir al-Mu'minin; we are not capable of that; the same Imam says: "Beware that you cannot behave like that"; but rather, "assist me with piety and striving"; strive; do not follow the path of the companions of worldly power.

Therefore, those who have responsibilities in the Islamic Republic must truly pay attention to one of the things that is necessary for piety, which is not to pursue a luxurious and ceremonial life and the like. They should have a normal life, avoid extravagance and the like. Of course, there is much to say about piety. This main point that we wanted to convey to you is this, that of course, in reality, I am the most addressed by these words and I need it more than you. We must consider piety as our main goal, our main path, our main means at our disposal and pursue piety; this was our fundamental statement.

And now regarding the issues of the country; regarding economic issues, there are statements that we will now present. That the President has stated that managements and planning must become more serious, must change, these are correct statements, they must be done and they should pursue these matters seriously. As stated, they should really pursue serious activity in the areas mentioned, and the path is open.

Well, today, the main problem and critique of the country is currently the economic problem. The reason is the pressure on the people, the pressure on the livelihood of the people, especially the weak classes; even the middle classes are somewhat under pressure, but more so, the weak classes are under pressure; naturally, when the economy of the country faces problems, the people and the weak in society are under pressure, the enemy also covets; one of the problems is that the enemy covets and hopes; the credibility of the country also decreases, meaning that truly, if there is an economic problem and a lack of a good economic program and economic progress in any country, it damages the credibility of that country; therefore, we must truly address the issue of the economy seriously. And I say there is no dead end in the true sense of the word here; there is truly no dead end; yes, there are problems, there are obstacles, but there is no dead end.

Well, our enemies, at the forefront of whom is America, have intensified the sanctions hoping that they can strike a blow to the Islamic Republic through this path; they say they have imposed unprecedented sanctions. They are right; these sanctions that they have imposed on the Islamic Republic are unprecedented, but what is important is that the Islamic Republic has a strong metal; some global observers have also said that if these sanctions and pressures were imposed on any other country, they would have significant effects on them, but the Islamic Republic, relying on the people, on divine success, on the efforts of officials who are working in various corners of the country, remains strong; otherwise, there is pressure. They have done their part; the enemy has exerted all its efforts and has done its part; it has not spared any malice and wickedness; their goal is to force the officials to surrender and change their calculations so that it leads to surrender, meaning to come to surrender before America; and to place the people against the system; this is the enemy's goal.

This calculation is a wrong calculation; that is, America's calculations are wrong. In the past years, in these forty years, they have had similar calculations and have not succeeded and have suffered losses and have not been able to inflict the desired blow on the Islamic Republic; now it is the same; this time they will certainly fail; there is no doubt about it, but the hatred and animosity they have towards Islamic Iran has blinded them, meaning it has distorted their calculations and they cannot calculate correctly. This hatred and animosity has truly blinded them; otherwise, there are many individuals in America who oppose this wicked and savage approach towards Iran and Muslim groups and resistance groups; however, their hands are tied; we see their articles, their statements, their actions, we read them, we know what they say, but they do not understand; the current officials of America truly have no understanding and do not comprehend.

Let me say this here: no one should be afraid of the apparent might of America; no one; that is, this is truly a very serious mistake. One feels that some are intimidated by this apparent might and threats and commotion; fear of this apparent might is wrong; superpowers carry out their work in this way; with commotion. Their real power is much less than the commotion they make; much less; however, they threaten, they make noise, they intimidate this and that. No one should be afraid; neither should one fear them nor the wealth of these Qarun-like figures in the Persian Gulf; these Qarun-like figures around us cannot do anything. They have spent billions against us in various sectors, and they have not reached anywhere; their hands are truly tied. America in 1979, which was the year of our great Islamic revolution, was much more powerful than now. Jimmy Carter, who was then the President of America, was both wiser and more powerful than this guy who is now in power; he is less powerful - both financially and politically - and also less wise. And they had an agent inside Iran who was in control of all affairs; Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was their agent, he worked for them, he was their supporter, and all affairs of the country were in his hands; they had that too. Nevertheless, the nation was able to defeat America with empty hands. You might say, "Well, that was a revolution"; it is a revolution now too; the number of enthusiastic revolutionary youth is not less than the day the revolution triumphed, and the depth of their revolutionary thought is even greater; this is how it is. You can see examples of this in various events that occur in the country, for example, in the commemorations of the revolution; today that revolutionary movement, that revolutionary fervor, shows itself where necessary. Therefore, the might of America should not frighten anyone. I will, God willing, discuss the issue of America again at the end of my speech if time permits.

The issue of the economy of the country is our important issue of the day; we must address this. Our economy is one of the large economies of the world, our economic infrastructure is good; we must organize and arrange the managements in such a way that they can utilize this existence in the best way, truly utilize the forgotten and neglected capacities. Our economy has several chronic diseases, and if we can solve these in this period - this period in which we are grappling with the issue of oil and sanctions and these things are at play - I believe our economy will leap forward.

One issue is the dependency on oil. The great flaw of our economy is the dependency on oil. We have extracted this liquid from underground, without any added value, we have given this cash - it is like cash - and received dollars, and spent it on current affairs and living expenses; this is wrong. This development fund we have established was for this reason, so that we can gradually separate ourselves from oil. Now is also a good opportunity; one of the things that must truly be included in the grand planning of our economic officials is this: we must work to reduce dependency on oil day by day.

One issue is the unnecessary interventions of governmental bodies in the economy; this is also one of our problems. The policies of Article 44 were meant to close this door; some work has been done, but not the work that should have been done in this area. The government should have a role of oversight and guidance in activities that do not require intervention; now in some activities, the government must intervene, and no one other than the government can, but in many of these, it is not necessary; this is one.

One issue is the destruction of the business environment; these twists and strange corridors of governmental bodies also cause the business environment in society to be destroyed, which is one of our problems. I have heard that in some countries, to start a production job, half a day is needed; here, there are many problems; now this is in the hands of the government and the parliament and the officials, they must facilitate the business environment. Now I will later discuss production and how important this issue is.

Another issue is the structural reforms of the budget that have been mentioned, and I emphasize; it was agreed that in the first four months of 1398, the parliament and the government, in cooperation with each other, would resolve this structural budget issue; two months have passed, now there are more than two months left; this is one of the fundamental and important tasks that must be done. There is much to say about the reform of the banking system, and its place is not in this parliament, and we have repeatedly discussed these matters with the officials.

It seems that we can work on structural reforms in this period. It requires a bit of courageous management; a bit of government officials must enter this matter with courage; they should not consider non-duty, non-law, and non-national interest. I have noted here "courageous management, hopeful, jihadist, with field awareness of problems - many problems cannot be understood in the office and behind the desk, one must go to the scene, to the field, to be able to touch the problems - not being passive in the face of the enemy, not conditioning the economy of the country to the decisions of this or that"; one of the important issues is this. We should not condition the economy to see whether America will extend those exemptions or not; not at all; from the beginning, one of our problems has been this; in these years, this has repeatedly happened. We, as government officials, have conditioned many of our activities on what the other side, which is not in our control, will decide; well, when we do this, a certain merchant, a certain investor, a certain entrepreneur will also do the same; many important works and necessary developmental actions have been stalled because we are waiting to see what others will decide; no, the economy should not be conditioned on the actions of others.

One point is that we must truly activate the capacities of the people; I have repeatedly stated this, and I am repeating it now - this is also due to the familiarity and knowledge I have, thanks be to God, about the existence of these capacities - that we have a vast popular capacity, we have good youth; educated, entrepreneurial, innovative youth in various sectors who we must trust; we must invite them, call them for various works on a point; for example, suppose the government focuses on an issue in economic matters, for instance, on the issue of the national currency value, and asks these youths to come, sit, think, strive, work, provide solutions, take action; these are capacities. And trust in God; with trust in the Almighty God, these works will be accomplished, in my opinion.

One of the things that is very necessary is that the government must confront the destructive factors in various sectors of the economy, and everyone must support the government in this confrontation. Well, today there is smuggling, there is hoarding, there are very harmful intermediaries - reports about treacherous purchases regarding wheat, meat, public goods, and the like are coming, which have also been raised with the officials - these are treachery and must be confronted. They have imported a certain product and hoarded it in the warehouse; this is hoarding and must be confronted. Well, yes, when you confront them, noise will be created; a number of people will make a fuss, will make noise; everyone must stand behind the government, help so that the government’s enforcement can truly work.

I have noted a few fundamental tasks that must be considered. All officials, thanks be to God, are present here; both members of parliament and high-ranking government officials are present, as well as officials of the judiciary; these tasks relate to you. These are a few fundamental tasks that if we all accept them as a general thought, then we will help each other, we will synergize.

One fundamental task is the removal of obstacles to production. This "production boom" that we have proposed this year as a slogan is the key to solving many of our economic problems; production is like this. If we can truly boost production, if we can remove the many obstacles to production in the country - which this can be done with jihadist determination, with the employment of specialized youth - many problems such as employment, inflation, public welfare, and people's incomes will be solved, exports will flourish. Production is the mother of the most important economic issues of the country; and in our opinion, it is possible. Wherever we relied on our youth, trusted them, provided them with at least minimal facilities - generally, youth are like this that they work with minimal facilities - we have progressed. You have seen examples of this in recent years. One example is in our military productions. Well, truly, this issue of military productions, which the enemy is very sensitive about, is very important. These precise, pinpoint missiles - whether ballistic missiles or cruise missiles - that are launched from a distance of, for example, 1500 kilometers, 2000 kilometers, and hit the target with five or six meters of deviation, is very important. The uproar they make about the issue of missiles and the like is because of these advancements. Who has done these? These are the same youth. Faithful and motivated youth work, they do not tire from working.

Or the day we needed twenty percent enriched uranium for the necessary devices we had in Tehran and elsewhere for medicine and related issues, well, we used to import twenty percent enriched uranium; we had imported some years ago, and it was running out; it was running out, meaning that these nuclear medicines produced using nuclear radiation would completely stop; the officials became aware of this issue, pursued it, made efforts, the other side first said they would sell it; then they put this condition, that condition, we saw problems were being created and they were unwilling; we said and asked our officials to pursue it, do it yourselves; no one believed it; they pursued it and accomplished this great task, this important task; they were able to obtain twenty percent enriched uranium. At that time, I said - I think it was in this session - that the most difficult part of this enrichment process is up to this twenty percent; after that, there are no problems, it is much easier than this; this difficult part of the path was accomplished. Who did it? Our youth. Well, why can’t they solve the problems of our industries? Why can’t they solve the missing links in some of our commercial and industrial works? They can; we must trust them; this is a fundamental task.

The issue of boosting production must be taken seriously. Esteemed officials must be very sensitive to the sleeping and shutting down of production factories and places; sometimes news comes that is truly bitter news; for example, a well-known factory with many products shuts down due to some problem. Of course, I had noted that I would say this later, but now I will say it here; truly, the officials of the Ministry of Industries should look into the necessary sections - whether in terms of machinery and parts, or in terms of intermediary goods and necessary materials for production - to see where there are shortages; prepare a list, call for it, and ask various officials of the country; now that importing it from abroad has problems, they can produce many of these materials. There are some things that have nothing to do with nuclear issues and the like, but due to malice and wickedness, they have prohibited the purchase of these and do not allow them; very well, let’s produce them domestically. Our youth are ready, they are innovative; they should be asked, a permanent exhibition should be established, needs should be defined there, productions should be defined there. This is one issue.

Another fundamental task that is necessary in the economy is self-sufficiency. From the very beginning of the revolution until now, the issue of self-sufficiency has been raised. In the early days of the revolution, in various sectors of the army, military self-sufficiency was initiated; then the IRGC came into the field, and many various works were done in this area. Youth in the Jihad for Construction were pursuing these works, and the ground for self-sufficiency truly existed in the country.

Then, in our productions, fortunately, those responsible for agriculture were asked to achieve self-sufficiency in wheat. They made efforts, thanks be to God, it was achieved. Both in the last couple of years and previously, self-sufficiency in wheat was secured. In everything, self-sufficiency can be achieved, work can be done, efforts can be made, and mainly in these things that are food materials: wheat, barley, oilseeds, or livestock; in these things, self-sufficiency must be achieved.

A new thought, a fresh idea unfortunately entered our decision-making bodies at one point that distanced us from self-sufficiency; and that was "economic efficiency". They said producing wheat and self-sufficiency in wheat is not economically efficient; the economic efficiency is to import wheat. Well, yes, it is clear, at one time, economic efficiency may be in this; but when they block your wheat, when they block imports, and do not sell you wheat, what will you do? Which wise government in the world does this? They said go plant saffron, import wheat, because saffron sells for more in the world; economic efficiency is this.

In the case of oil, it is the same; gasoline is the same. Now the President has pointed out; this gas condensate refinery that has started in Bandar Abbas as the Star of the Persian Gulf is an example of self-sufficiency. Now about one-third of the current wasteful gasoline consumption is provided by this establishment - now the consumption of gasoline in the country is wasteful; this hundred million liters and ninety million liters and sometimes more and sometimes a little less per day is wasteful, it should not be; however, approximately one-third of this is provided by this refinery - which started in 2007, was stalled for a while, and thanks to the IRGC, it has been operational, it is now there; self-sufficiency means this. This must be given great importance. In all areas, we must think of self-sufficiency. The power of the country lies in self-sufficiency; the dignity of the country, the honor of the country lies in self-sufficiency; we must be able to procure the necessary pillars of our needs ourselves.

A third issue that is also among the essential things is the business environment and increasing the ease of doing business, which I mentioned earlier. That is, there are so many various and contradictory regulations in this department, that production becomes difficult. We have raised this in several meetings of government officials, we have asked them; well, sufficient effort has not been made. I sincerely ask you to take this matter very seriously. Do something to encourage productive work. Well, today everyone knows that liquidity in the country has reached a very high level; this liquidity can be a disaster, it can be a source of inflation, it can rush to any place and cause devastation, but if this liquidity is directed towards production, it can be like a lake or a reservoir, a divine mercy; why is it not being directed? One of the reasons is that since the producer is facing problems, he does not see his own benefit in doing productive work. This year, at the beginning of the year, in my speech on the day of Eid, I said: there were some who accepted the problems of production, purely for the sake of God! I had seen someone who said I can put this capital in the bank and benefit from its interest - long-term deposits, with high profits, with no worries at all - but I want to produce for the sake of God; because the country needs this production. Well, such people are few; we must do something to increase their numbers; the obstacles to production must be removed.

An important point in the issue of the country's economy is the priority of the agricultural sector. The agricultural sector, both in terms of providing food for the people and food materials for the people, which is in the first place, and also because currently the most employment is in the agricultural sector - which according to reports I have received, about thirty percent of employment is in the agricultural sector - if the agricultural issue and the issues of villages and the problems of villages and bringing processing factories and processing industries to villages and addressing the problems of selling goods by villagers are pursued, I believe it will greatly help the advancement of the economy; the importance of the agricultural sector is evident from this. Sometimes, news of the closure of some agricultural production units reaches the ears, which is very bitter news; every case one hears is bitter. Important works must be done in this area that I have noted, and there is no need to mention them here; that is, our time is short.

In the industrial and mining sectors, as we said, sometimes in an industrial job, there is a need for a part or a certain material or raw materials, which must be imported, transferring money in banks is impossible, there are problems, it cannot be done; well, we must strive to produce this domestically. That is, one of the things that must be done in the economic issues is certainly the responsibility of the Ministry of Industries, is to ensure that our industries and mines can operate smoothly. Today, thanks be to God, we have numerous research groups; there are probably thousands of research groups in the country now - both inside universities and outside universities - most of them are young; I have connections with some of them, they come, sit, we ask them, all are motivated, have good ideas. They tell us things that I, being familiar with government issues, know that what they say "I can create" is exactly what the government needs. Sometimes it has happened that we connected them; our office took charge of this work, we said they should take action, we connected this research group to a certain ministry, and their work got started. Today, we have a tremendous wealth in this regard, an invaluable wealth: the wealth of capable and motivated human resources. Youth are motivated, they do not tire from working, they are patient, they are innovative - now those I have become acquainted with and know from near and far - most of them are also committed, revolutionary, enthusiastic, and interested. The government must utilize these; the officials of the Ministry of Industries must present a clear program, identify the missing links in industries, call for them, ask them, and provide them with facilities; it is often the case that with minimal funds, they get started.

Now one of the opportunities that exist is the compensation for the damages caused by the flood. Well, the flood caused significant damage to living facilities and equipment and the like; our factories must get to work. One of the fundamental tasks is that we must arrange the credits we allocate for flood-affected areas in such a way, plan it in such a way, and guide it in such a way that it leads to the revival of the factories of the country; production is this. Let’s not go back to unrestrained imports; for example, suppose we want to provide a certain product to earthquake-affected areas, if it is scarce or nonexistent in the country, let’s go for imports; no, let’s go for production, let’s go for domestic producers; let’s arrange the facilities and assistance in this way. This is also one matter.

One matter is also housing construction; housing is one of the entrepreneurial sectors in the country. One of the neglects that occurred in these past years was that housing was not addressed; the production of housing activates many industries; the production of housing employs many industries and activates them; that is, it is entrepreneurial, it creates production and boosts production. Now we need housing in flood-affected areas - both for the housing that needs to be repaired and for the housing that needs to be built - this is an opportunity, and we must take advantage of it. The agencies that can assist the government in these areas are not few; the private sector can participate here, and the same youths I mentioned can be called upon to come and help, creating a massive employment-generating movement in the country.

Be aware that in confronting the enemy, the slogan of the Islamic Republic and the Islamic revolution is "resistance". The enemy wants to invade, to advance; there are two paths in front of this enmity that wants to constantly advance: one path is that you retreat; as you retreat, it advances; the more you retreat, the more it advances; the other path is that you stand firm, resist. And our experience in the Islamic Republic - we do not want to resort to the experiences of history and the early Islam - shows that resistance against the enemy pays off; wherever we have resisted, we have received results: in the sacred defense, in various sectors, in the security provocations against us, in economic matters. Once, our annual oil revenue throughout the year - which was the only source of income - was about six billion; was there anything harder than this? Of course, at that time, the population of the country was much less than now, but still, five billion and six billion income for the country was nothing; we were able to stand firm, we resisted, the people stood firm. It was not very difficult, standing firm was not that hard; resistance.

Well, resistance in the military arena is one thing, in the economic arena is another. In the economic arena, resistance means what we have mentioned, that is, strengthening the internal economic structure, solidifying the foundations, dealing seriously with issues, following up on issues. One of our problems is the lack of follow-up; issues are left unattended. We start a topic well, we move a little, then gradually it is left unattended; follow-up must be done. All these issues that have been mentioned are examples of resistance.

For reforming affairs, do not look outside the country; others will not help us [but rather] will strike us; the outside strikes us. Look at Europe? These European countries that were not America, we had no quarrel with them, we had friendly relations with some of them. You see how they behaved in the issue of the JCPOA and their commitments and the like. Now it is interesting that they keep repeating that "we are committed to the JCPOA." What does the commitment of Germany, France, and England to the JCPOA mean? One of them should ask, what do you mean by being committed? What commitment do you have in relation to the JCPOA? To which commitment are you adhering? They keep saying we are committed, we are loyal. What does it mean to be committed? Well, this is how it is. Therefore, we should not look outside. To reform work, we must look inward. The essence is here.

There is, thanks be to God, no shortage of forces here, there are many. The country is large, the population is large, there are many active young human resources. And the people must, of course, play a role in these economic matters; that is, this address is not only to the government, to the officials, a significant part of it relates to the people. The people must help, assist the government. In this production sector that has been mentioned, the production boom, the people can truly invest, assist. The people can buy domestic products. We set last year's slogan as domestic production goods. Well, many acted and good works were done. This should not stop; it should increase day by day. That is, truly, domestic products must have priority over foreign products in the eyes of every Iranian. If they want the economic situation of the country to improve, one of the tasks is this.

One of the tasks is not to overindulge in purchases. Sometimes one observes that merely due to a rumor that, for example, in a certain social media network, a wicked person, a liar has come and stated that a certain product may become expensive, they rush to buy! What is the necessity? There should not be overindulgence in purchases, rumors should not be heeded, extravagance should not occur. In some places, truly, extravagance occurs that should not happen. These are the roles of the people. Well, now I have other notes regarding economic issues about banks and the like that we will discuss with the banking officials later; now there is no time.

The issue of America. There is no doubt that America's enmity, which has begun since the beginning of the revolution, has taken a clear form today. Pay attention. That we think that today America's enmity has increased, no, it has become clear. There was enmity before too [but] they did not speak so openly; they say openly now. They say we want to do this, we want to do that. They threaten. Well, one must know that the strength and capability of someone who threatens loudly is not as great as their loudness; one should be more afraid of someone who does not threaten; one should not be afraid of someone who threatens. Therefore, today the Americans have made their enmity clear; they are more protective of the interests of the Zionist regime than any other government; that is, it must be said that the command of many of America's policies is in the hands of the Zionists; now not necessarily the Zionist government in occupied Palestine, but the hands of the Zionist community that dominates their affairs. They also need it; that is, this current American government needs to bluster; you see sometimes they say and have repeated several times that "these policies of ours have changed Iran; Iran today is different from past Iran"; that is, these policies of mine have affected Iran. Yes, he is right, it has changed; the change is that the people's hatred of America has increased tenfold. The people's hatred of them has increased; their access to the appropriation of the interests of the Islamic Republic has become more unattainable; the determination of our youth to keep the country prepared has increased; our military forces are alert, our security forces are even more alert; yes, the changes he speaks of have occurred in this way. You see now how much the calculations of this enemy are flawed that a president says, "Every Friday in Tehran, there is a rally against the system"; first of all, it is not Friday, it is Saturday, it is not Tehran, it is Paris. Thanks be to God, who has made our enemies foolish.

This enmity exists; well, this enmity that exists.

One point that is often overlooked is that America is currently embroiled in major social and economic problems within itself; of course, they have made some progress in the economic field, but experts say these progresses are short-term, they will not last, but their significant social problems are currently ongoing. The state of their government is also not cohesive; these contradictory statements they make - one says one thing, another says something else; today they say something, tomorrow they say the opposite - indicate confusion. Now what I have noted here is a report from the US Department of Agriculture, which states that 41 million Americans are suffering from hunger and lack of food security; this is the state of America. That is, this bluster and threats and the idea that they are exerting economic pressure on the Iranian nation comes from such a government that according to their own statistics, 41 million people are suffering from hunger.

In terms of social conditions; they have a center called the "National Vital Statistics Center of America" which states that forty percent of births in America are illegitimate. There are two million two hundred thousand prisoners in America, which is unparalleled in the world; that is, in proportion to the population, it is unparalleled; no place in the world has this many prisoners in proportion to the population. The highest rate of drug use in the world is in America. You see! These are their social problems; they are in trouble. Thirty-one percent of mass shootings in the world occur in America; every day you hear, you see, you read in the newspapers that in a certain school, in a certain club, in a certain subway station, a shooting has occurred. These are their social conditions; they are in trouble; one feels pity for their people. Then who comes to be their president! People who are so far from truth and reality. Therefore, do not exaggerate the enemy; the enemy is a troubled enemy.

Of course, we do not want to neglect the enmity of the enemy that: "The enemy cannot be belittled"; but do not exaggerate the enemy to such an extent that one feels they cannot do anything; no, the enemy is not that strong; the enemy is a troubled enemy, its policies are also wrong. The policies that this president has employed in recent years have generally turned out to be detrimental to them politically and security-wise; their policies in our region are like this, their European policies are like this, in confronting some Asian powers, their policies have also turned out to be detrimental to them; their policies have been such that they have not been able to help them. This issue of seven trillion dollars that this person mentioned in his election campaign continues; they are still spending it; of course, their hands are in the pockets of the Saudis. Therefore, they have not succeeded in their policies.

In the policy of confronting the Islamic Republic, I tell you that America will certainly fail and it will turn out to be in our favor. Now there are experts in America who are warning - these are published in their media - that the pressure you are exerting on Iran will lead to an economic leap in Iran; they are saying this, and the reality is the same; they will fail. Their behavior is passive; the increasing strength of the Islamic Republic, thanks be to God, frightens them, and out of passivity, they resort to such actions. Therefore, this must be taken into account.

Well, now one sees and hears that he who says negotiation, some people inside also say, "Well, what is wrong with negotiation?" Negotiation is poison. As long as America is what it is now - in the words of the Imam, as long as it has not become a human; the Imam expressed it this way - our negotiation with America is poison, and with this current American government, it is a double poison.

Negotiation means a deal; it means giving something and taking something. What they are looking for in this deal is precisely the strengths of the Islamic Republic; they want to negotiate on this. They do not say let’s negotiate about the weather, about natural resources, about the environment; they say let’s negotiate about your defensive weapons; why do you have defensive weapons? Well, defensive weapons are essential for a country. They say let’s negotiate on this; negotiating means what? It means if you are making missiles with a certain range, reduce that range so that it does not reach our base, which is America, so that if we strike you one day, you cannot respond; well, this is a matter of negotiation; you either accept this or you do not accept it? It is clear that you will not accept it; when you do not accept it, it is the same old story; this is the same dish and the same bowl, the same dispute, the same uproar; it is not about religion and revolution and the like; no honorable and intelligent Iranian would negotiate about their strengths with the opposing side; with a side that wants to take these strengths away from them, they do not negotiate; we need these. Our strategic depth in the region is very important; well, it is important for any country; the political and security strategic depth is an essential component for the survival of all governments and nations, and we, thanks be to God, have a very good strategic depth in the region; they are upset about this, they say let’s negotiate on regional issues, meaning you should give up your strategic depth; they want to negotiate on these.

Therefore, the essence of negotiation is wrong. Negotiation with someone who is reasonable is wrong; now these are not even reasonable; [negotiating with] people who go back on their word, break their commitments, are bound to nothing - neither a moral thing, nor a legal thing, nor an international norm; they are bound to nothing - therefore, it is ridiculous. Of course, among our wise people, there is no one who would pursue this issue; the general public is also clear; now some here and there sometimes make some noise. Therefore, negotiation absolutely has no meaning, and just as we have said before many times, such a thing does not exist. In the previous government, which appeared much more polished and better than these, Obama wrote a letter of "I am devoted to you" to us, and we also replied to him after a while, and immediately he wrote a second letter; I wanted to reply again, but in the meantime, the sedition of 88 occurred; they happily went to support the seditionists and defend the sedition, supporting the sedition against the Islamic Republic; those who now appear in this way, their essence was that as soon as a sedition arose here, all those previous words, all those expressions of devotion, seemed to be forgotten, and they joined the sedition against the Islamic Republic; these are clear.

Therefore, the definitive option for the Iranian nation is resistance against America, and in this confrontation, in this resistance, they will be forced to retreat. And the discussion of resistance is not a military confrontation; that some also raise the issue of war in newspapers and in social media and the like is nonsense. There is no war to be fought, and by God's grace, it will not be fought. We are not seeking war, nor is it in their interest to seek war, and they know it is not in their interest. We, too, have never been inclined to military action - we have never been, and we are not now - this confrontation is a confrontation of wills; this confrontation is a confrontation of wills; and our will is stronger than theirs. In addition to our strong will, we also have trust in God. "That is because Allah is the protector of those who have believed, and the disbelievers have no protector"; they have no protector; we rely on divine will. Therefore, God willing, the future is a good future, and the difficulties are not as some depict and describe, and they will not be. God willing, our government, the officials of the country, with determination, with power, with strong will, with managements and - as they have pointed out - with new and fresh strategies will confront events and will be victorious.

O Lord! By Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, grant victory to the nation of Iran in all these confrontations. O Lord! Unite our great and dear Imam, who opened this path before us, with His saints. O Lord! By Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, may what we have said and what we have intended and what we will do, God willing, be for You and in Your way; and accept it from us.

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