Supreme Leader's Speech in Meeting with Government Officials (07/07/2014)

The following is the full text of the speech delivered on July 7, 2014 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with government officials. The meeting was held in the Imam Khomeini (r.a.) Hussainiyah on the ninth day of the holy month of Ramadan.

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Mohammad, and upon his immaculate household

First of all, I would like to welcome each and every one of you brothers and sisters and the dear and committed officials of the Islamic Republic. It is a very good meeting and by Allah's favor, it will be full of divine blessings and guidance and the light of this month. The statements of Mr. President were good and complete statements. I hope that by the blessedness of this month and the pure prayers of righteous people, believers and those who fast, what the officials of the country intend to do will produce the desired results.

The month of Ramadan has been described as "auspicious". The reason why this month is auspicious is that it is a way to liberate oneself from the fire of hell and to achieve paradise. As we read in the prayers of the month of Ramadan, "This is the month of liberation from hell and achieving paradise" [Iqbal al-A'mal, Volume 1, page 90]. Divine paradise and the fire of divine hell exist in this world as well. What happens in the hereafter is the manifestation of this world: ﴾Indeed, hell surrounds the unbelievers on all sides﴿ [The Holy Quran, 9: 49]. Hell has surrounded unbelievers, oppressors, enemies and opponents, in this world and in this life. The same is true of paradise.

It is in our own hands to go from hell to paradise. This happens in this world and its concrete, hidden and real manifestation will be witnessed in the hereafter. We can take this trip and this path from the hell of misconduct, misgivings and doubts - which belongs to this world - to the paradise of good deeds, good thoughts, good behavior and good conduct. This path and movement is called "penitence" and "repentance". It has been said in a prayer that "[T] his is the month of penitence and this is the month of repentance" [Iqbal al-A'mal, Volume 1, page 25]. It is with penitence and repentance that one is liberated from hell and that one achieves paradise.

One of the blessings of the auspicious month of Ramadan is the prayers of this month. These prayers teach us how to speak to God, how to ask Him for help and how to pay attention to Him. Moreover, they teach us many lessons for which we cannot find an equal even in common moral narrations. I have chosen two prayers from this month which I would like to narrate in the beginning of my speech. The selection of these two prayers is because of our needs today.

Today, we - as officials of our dear country and the Islamic Republic - urgently need serious and diligent work which is accompanied by purity and sincerity. These two prayers help us move toward this path. One prayer is the prayer of the first day of the auspicious month of Ramadan. I have chosen this part from this prayer: "Oh God, place us among those who do something while they have willed it. Do not place us among those poor people who suffer from indolence and among those who rely on things other than action" [Iqbal al-A'mal, Volume 1, page 23].

The first sentence says, "Oh God, place us among those who do something while they have willed it". This action should be purposeful, one that enjoys intention and one that is clear in advance where it is leading to. The second sentence is "Do not place us among those poor people who suffer from indolence". "Kisalat" means laziness and idleness. It says, "God, do not place us among these people". This is what the prayer teaches us. The third sentence is: "And among those who rely on things other than action".

It says, "Do not place us among those who day dream, rant and fabricate issues in a meeting without taking any action". Notice that this is the lesson of this prayer. In the first day of the month of Ramadan, believers enter the divine feast with this spirit. This is one of the great servings of this feast. This is one prayer.

The second prayer is one that is said on each day of this auspicious month. It says, "And save me from drowsiness, laziness, exhaustion, carelessness, inflexibility, ignorance and deception" [Iqbal al-A'mal, Volume 1, page 26]. It asks God to save us from these characteristics: the first is drowsiness. The second is laziness. The third is exhaustion. It means getting sick and tired of something. The next one is carelessness. It means doing things in a careless way and ignoring precision. The next one is hardness of heart, fossilization and inflexibility. The next one is ignorance and confusion about our position and about what is happening and what is ahead of us. And the last one is deception and arrogance.

It asks God to save us from these characteristics. Notice what lessons these prayers are. Well, the function of these concepts - which are lofty and outstanding concepts - is much more important for officials in charge of public affairs than for ordinary individuals. When we say, "Oh God, do not make us suffer from laziness, inflexibility and ignorance", we are making this request from two perspectives: one is from a personal perspective. We make this personal request so that we do not make a mistake and so that we do not face problems.

Another is from the perspective of our responsibilities. You are like a captain who is steering a ship. You are like a pilot who is flying a plane. The issue is not only the issue of your lives. You are different from a person who is driving his car on a road alone. His responsibility is to protect his own life. But you are not like him. A group of people are with you. These are the things that make your responsibilities and commitment - on the issues that were discussed - heavier.

In our religious literature, the month of Ramadan is the month of confronting shaitan and satanic behavior on the one hand and behaving in a kind way, obeying God and worshiping Him on the other hand. On the one hand, it is said that shaitan is tethered in the month of Ramadan and on the other hand, it is said that the month of Ramadan is the month of obeying and worshiping God. The shortest and most meaningful word to describe this month is the word "piety": ﴾Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may show piety﴿ [The Holy Quran, 2: 183].

The issue is the issue of confrontation between shaitan and piety. Shaitan's job is to tempt. What does tempting mean? It means creating disruption in your calculation system. This is shaitan. The opposite point is piety's role. Shaitan's effort is to tempt you. That is to say, he tries to make our minds, our nature and our calculation system - which has been installed inside man - stop working. He wants to make us make a mistake in calculation.

Piety's job is the opposite of this: ﴾If you fear Allah, He will grant you a criterion to judge between right and wrong﴿ [The Holy Quran, 8: 29]. Piety gives you a criterion. That is to say, it gives you the awareness to separate truth from falsehood. In another holy ayah, God says, ﴾So, fear Allah for it is God that teaches you﴿ [The Holy Quran, 2: 282]. With piety, Allah the Exalted opens the gates of knowledge, awareness and wisdom to you.

Shaitan influences our calculation system with threats and temptations. On the one hand, he frightens us. A holy ayah from Sura Aal-e Imran says, ﴾It is only shaitan that suggests to you the fear of his disciples: Be not afraid of them, but fear Me if you have faith﴿ [The Holy Quran, 3: 175]. On the issue of the battle that happened after the Battle of Uhud - there was a rumor saying that the enemy is coming to destroy Muslims and that Muslims are going to lose everything - the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hh) said, "Those of you who became wounded in the Battle of Uhud today should carry their swords and accompany me. If none of you comes, I will go alone".

The Holy Prophet (pbuh&hh) set out to go. Those who had been wounded in Uhud on that day took their swords and accompanied the Holy Prophet (pbuh&hh). With a surprise attack, they went and destroyed the enemy who had lain in ambush near Madina, who had started these rumors and who had decided to attack. And then they returned: ﴾And they returned with grace and bounty from Allah and no harm ever touched them﴿ [The Holy Quran, 3: 174]. Then the Holy Quran says, ﴾It is only shaitan that suggests to you the fear of his disciples﴿.

So, one of the things that shaitan does is to cause fear. ﴾Shaitan threatens you with poverty﴿ [The Holy Quran, 2: 268]. He frightens us with poverty. According to an interpretation of this holy ayah, this was a threat. On the other hand, one of the things that he does is to tempt. Shaitan gives certain promises which are deceitful: ﴾Shaitan makes them promises, and creates in them false desires, but shaitan's promises are nothing but deception﴿ [The Holy Quran, 4: 120].

He gives promises and awakens desires in people's hearts. He paints a colorful, fake and imaginary future - like a mirage - for the eyes of believers. "But shaitan's promises are nothing but deception". His promises are hollow. On the one hand, he makes threats and on the other hand, he tempts. This is like America's behavior in the present time. This is like the behavior that arrogant powers always show. On the one hand, they make threats and on the other hand, they tempt. These temptations are not only personal. They temp in general ways. They say, "We do this, we do that". But they do not and they lie. This is what shaitan does.

All the things that shaitan does - including tempting and making threats - are for the sake of making our calculation system stop working so that we make wrong calculations. When one's calculation system stops working, things go out of order. Making wrong calculations is one of the greatest dangers. It sometimes threatens man's life and it sometimes threatens his fate. This is because man's power and capabilities are under the domination of his will and his will is under the influence of his calculation system. If his calculation system does not work properly, his will makes a decision and moves towards the direction which is wrong.

In such circumstances, all his power and capabilities move in this wrong direction. This is what we should be careful about. As I said, for a person who does not have a responsibility, taking care has a certain meaning and for you and I who have a responsibility, it has a different meaning. We should take care not to let our calculation system witness a disruption by human and jinn shaitans. We should take care not to misunderstand issues. Shaitan is not only from among jinns. He is not only iblis: ﴾Likewise, did We make for every messenger an enemy - shaitans among men and jinns, inspiring each other with flowery discourses by way of deception﴿ [The Holy Quran, 6: 112].

Shaitans among men and jinns help one another. I would like to stress that one of the mistakes in the area of calculation is that we remain confined to visible and purely materialistic factors. One of the mistakes is to ignore spiritual factors, divine traditions - those which God has informed us about and those that are invisible. This is one of the great mistakes in the area of calculation. God has said, ﴾If you help the cause of Allah, He will help you and make firm your stance﴿ [The Holy Quran, 47: 7].

Can this be said in a clearer way? If you move on the path of God and if you help God's religion, God will help you. This is unchangeable: ﴾You shall not find any change in the course of Allah﴿ [The Holy Quran, 33: 62]. If you move on the path of reviving the divine religion and if you preserve this path, God will help you. This has been said by the Holy Quran with such clarity. This is the divine promise. We have experienced this in practice.

You should know that this era of the history of the Revolution will be one of the most prominent historical eras in the history that will be discussed by future generations. In this materialistic world, in the world of the domination of superpowers and in the world of widespread hostility towards Islam and towards Islamic teachings and values, a system has been created based on Islam and in an area where the agents of deviating powers had exerted more influence than any other area in the world.

This is a strange event. You and I have gotten used to it. This is the same as "If you help the cause of Allah, He will help you and make firm your feet". You will not falter, as we did not. The people of Iran did not falter. There have been so many pressures, so many plots, so many cruelties and so much unfairness, but the people of Iran did not change their minds. This is one of the divine traditions.

A holy ayah in the Holy Quran says, ﴾Have you not considered how Allah sets forth a parable of a good word being like a good tree, whose root is firm and whose branches are in heaven, yielding its fruit in every season by the permission of its Lord?﴿ [The Holy Quran, 14: 24-25]. A good word, a good action and a pure deed - one that is for God - prevails. It will grow roots, it will become strong and it will yield fruits. The Islamic Republic is that good word. It has been preserved like the good tree and it has become stronger. Today, the Islamic Republic - as a system, government and a political entity - is not comparable with 30 years ago.

In the second ayah after these ayahs, God says, ﴾Allah will establish in strength those who believe, with the word that stands firm, in this world and in the hereafter﴿ [The Holy Quran, 14: 27]. He will re-establish the same strength. These factors should be seen and they should be counted in our calculations. Not all the factors in achieving happiness, sinking into misery, making progress, suffering from backwardness, achieving success and witnessing defeat are confined to the common worldly factors that materialistic people rely on. These spiritual factors exist alongside worldly factors as well.

What I want to say in this part of my speech - which is the main part - is that today, we should not make a mistake in our calculations. You should not let the enemy influence your calculation system. You should not let him tempt you. You should not let him influence you with his temptations or threats.

Today, the battle between the Islamic Republic - which began with the victory of the Revolution and which is continuing with the same strength - is the same battle that existed between the prophets and the shaitans of the time, who were from among men and jinns. We are after lofty ideals. We are after forming an Islamic community, an Islamic government, an Islamic country and an Islamic ummah. We are after achieving the goals that great prophets, saints and martyrs pursued.

And the satanic regimes of the time have formed one front and they are naturally opposed to such a movement. This is why they create obstacles and make threats. Despite the glamour of this front and its superficial and material splendor, this divine and prophet-like movement is taking its path and moving forward. It is exerting influence and it is expanding and developing on a daily basis.

Today, what we witness in the behavior of global arrogance is this. Its goal is to create disruption in our calculation system. In other arenas, arrogance has failed. It has failed to do anything. In real arenas, only two material factors have been available to the camp of arrogance: one is military threats and another is sanctions. Arrogance has nothing except for these two things. The hands of arrogance are tied in terms of the power of reason and logic and the capability to prove its legitimacy. It can only carry out two tasks: one is to issue military threats - this is a task that it constantly carries out - and another is to impose sanctions.

And there are two cures for these. Sanctions can be counteracted with diligence in the area of the economy of resistance. The points that the honorable President raised today had been raised by him before and they are completely true. Economic plans should be prepared, pursued and implemented with the assumption that sanctions will remain there.

Imagine that sanctions will not be lifted at all. Well, this is what they themselves are saying as well. They too say that sanctions will not be touched. Even from this moment, they have begun saying, "Even if we reach a deal on the nuclear issue, it does not mean that all sanctions will be lifted. There are still other issues to be resolved".

This is what we have always said. I have repeatedly said in this meeting and different other meetings that the nuclear issue is an excuse. Even if the nuclear issue did not exist, they would make other excuses. For example, there is the issue of human rights and the issue of women. They fabricate many different issues. Fabricating and making excuses is not a demanding job. Moreover, the propaganda apparatus and empire is in their hands. Therefore, the cure for the issue of sanctions is the economy of resistance. Later on, I will discuss a few points in this regard.

As for the issue of military threats, there are very few people in today's world who take these military threats seriously. Of course, the Americans say, "The Iranians do not take it seriously". But it is not only us who do not take it seriously. There are many people in the world who do not take this threat seriously. Global spectators do not believe that this threat is a serious one because the opinion of global spectators and those who have a political awareness is that if it were economical for America to launch an attack, it would not hesitate even for one moment.

Will these people be sad if some people are killed and if a crisis arises somewhere? Are these people - who wholeheartedly supported a wolf named "Saddam" for eight years, who hit a passenger plane while it was on air and while they had no excuse, and who destroyed and shed the blood of several hundred people including innocent and uninformed women, men and children - afraid of killing people? Which of those people who created crises wherever they could and who staged color uprisings - as they say, color revolutions - are not led by arrogant powers? And these arrogant powers are headed by America.

They create crises inside countries and it does not matter to them whether these crises lead to murder and domestic wars or not. Are those who attacked Afghanistan and Iraq, those who killed hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq and those who killed people one by one in Iraq and other cities of Iraq under the command of intelligence services and mercenary and terrorist companies - such as Blackwater which we spoke about once - afraid of killing people? Are they afraid that other people may be killed? Do they care about such things?

The issue is not that they make military threats because they do not want to [attack]. They constantly say, "Israel issues military threats, but America prevents them from waging a war". Well why does America prevent it from doing so? If this claim is true, what is the reason? Is their conscience pricked if a country is attacked and a number of people are killed? The answer is no. The reason is that they do not consider waging a war to be economical. I firmly say that launching a military attack against the Islamic Republic of Iran is not economical for any country.

Today, the Americans themselves criticize their attack on Iraq. The important and noteworthy point is that they do not criticize it because it was a crime. Rather, they say that it was not to the advantage of America. That is to say, if it had been to the advantage of America, it would have been alright. They do not say, "We made a mistake by killing people. We made a mistake by attacking innocent people. We made a mistake by letting our soldiers kick people's doors in. We made a mistake by letting them kill women and children in front of the eyes of people". They do not say such things.

In the present time, their soldiers suffer from psychological problems because of the crimes that were committed there, but they do not acknowledge this officially. Rather, they say that the attack was not economical. So, the enemy is empty-handed both in the area of sanctions and in the area of military threats: "So, lose not heart, nor fall into despair for you must gain mastery if you are true in faith" [The Holy Quran, 3: 139]. If we believe in God, the enemy cannot do anything in real and practical arenas.

Now that it cannot do anything in real arenas and now that his hands are empty in the area of influence, what is the enemy's cure? The cure is that it creates disruption in the calculation system of the other side - our calculation system. They are pursuing this task through propaganda, political work and different contacts. They know that the Islamic Republic is capable of achieving its goals. From their viewpoint, the Islamic Republic must not want this. If it wants it, it can achieve it. They want to do something to make us stop wanting. Today, this is the effort of the world of arrogance which is headed by America. This is the same soft war that we have been speaking about since a few years ago. Other people have spoken about, written and discussed it as well.

They cannot change our calculations. From the first day, the calculations of the Islamic Republic have been based on reason and logic. The elements that have formed these calculations are these: the first one is trust in God and the traditions of creation. The second one is distrusting the enemy and knowing him. One of the factors in reliance on God and the traditions of creation is trust in the people and their faith, trust in affection and kindness, trust in pure motives, trust in the people's honesty - our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) was the manifestation of this kind of trust - belief in self-confidence and the fact that we can, reliance on action, avoidance of idleness, trust in divine assistance, reliance on responsibility and effort on the path of responsibility.

From the first day until today, these have been the things that have formed the basis and the infrastructure of the elements of the reasonable Islamic Republic. You should refer to Imam's (r.a.) statements. His statements are imbued with these concepts and teachings: benefiting from experience - including the way arrogant powers have behaved towards weak nations - and diligence for the sake of independence, remaining independent and living in an independent way.

What does independence mean? Some people find faults with the essence and meaning of independence? They ask, "What does such independence mean?" Independence means freedom from the will of foreigners and other people. This is the meaning of independence. Can any reasonable mind deny this? The meaning of independence is that a people should be able to determine their own fate.

This country did not enjoy independence for many years. The quasi-independence that existed was political. But the key of the government and the country was in the hands of other people. It was they who made the decisions. It was they who did everything. There were some people inside the country some of whom were attached to them and some of whom were not very attached to them, but they had to follow them. Independence is resistance against such a condition.

Well, arrogance is opposed to this reason. If someone thinks that the name of Islam makes them oppose the Islamic Republic, they should know that this is not the case. The name of Islam and Islamic practices and obligations do not make anyone show opposition.

Once, Imam (r.a.) said in one of his speeches, "When the English entered and occupied Iraq in the second decade of the 20th century, an English commander saw someone shouting and raising his voice. He became nervous. Someone was saying adhan from a minaret. He asked, "What is this noise?" They said, "He is saying adhan". Then he asked, "Is it against us?" someone replied, "No, it is not". He said, "OK, let him say whatever he wants". He did not care for the kind of adhan which was not against him and the kind of "Allahu Akbar" which did not humiliate him.

So, the issue is not the issue of Islam and Islamic obligations. Today, some countries carry the name of Islam and they observe Islamic obligations more or less, but their oil, their supplies and their vital resources are in the hands of arrogance. And the enemies do not show any opposition to such countries. On the contrary, they have friendly relations with them.

Recently, I read something interesting somewhere. An American expert has said, "Reconciliation between Iran and America is possible, but it is not possible between the Islamic Republic and America". He is right. Not only is reconciliation with the kind of Iran that is led by the Pahlavi family - which makes everything available to the Americans - possible, but it is also necessary. It is even necessary to do something beyond reconciliation for this kind of Iran. The issue is the issue of the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Republic means independence, freedom, commitment to Islamic faith, movement on the path of Islam, refusal to give in to the enemies' impositions and invitation to the unity of the Islamic Ummah.

This is the exact opposite of what they want. Of course, they are unfriendly towards this kind of Iran. Well, this was the main issue that I wanted to discuss: we should not forget about self-confidence, faith and action. We should not forget about resistance against laziness, carelessness, idleness and exhaustion. These are the lessons of the month of Ramadan.

I would like to offer some pieces of advice. One piece of advice is addressed to all officials. Taking a look at the political conditions of the world and the region shows us that we are at a sensitive point. You should know that today, there is a historical turn in the real sense of the word. If you are not strong, you will be bullied not only by America and the west but also by a creature named Saddam. If you are not strong, you will be bullied and you will suffer from their impositions. You should be strong.

What are the elements of strength? How can we understand and accept that we are strong? These are the elements of strength: High morale, hopefulness, hard work and diligence, identifying economic, cultural and security rifts - you should identify and see these rifts - cooperation between different organizations in charge of affairs and cooperation between these organizations and the people. This is one piece of advice which is addressed to everyone.

The second piece of advice is that you should work as hard as you can and as long as you have opportunities. Opportunities are limited. All of us are individuals who are moving towards death. We have limited time. We should work as hard as we can and as long as we are alive. You should not say, "They do not allow us to do things". This "they do not allow us" is not an acceptable statement. Many people used to say, "They do not allow us". Now too, some people say this. What does "they do not allow us" mean? You have certain capabilities and resources in the Majlis, in the administration, in the judiciary branch, in the Armed Forces and in the different sectors which are affiliated with the administration. You should benefit from these resources and work as hard as you can. You should not even allow one single moment to be wasted.

The third piece of advice is that you should coordinate your moves with the principles of the Revolution. You should avoid creating uproar and you should attend to solving the problems of the people. The fourth piece of advice is that you should consider departmental convergence and convergence with other branches to be important.

I always advise the honorable officials in charge of the three branches of government to hold meetings with one another. Many issues are resolved in these joint meetings such as meetings between the administration and the Majlis, meetings between the judiciary branch and the administration and meetings between the judiciary branch and the Majlis. These meetings and these exchanges of opinion lead to convergence. Another issue is the issue of jihadi management. This piece of advice is related to everyone.

I would like to offer a piece of advice to the administration and the executive branch in particular. First, everyone should know that I support the administration, as I supported all previous administrations. I trust the high-ranking executive officials. All the administrations that held office after the Revolution have been elected by the people and since I have been entrusted with the task of Leadership, I have supported all these administrations.

All administrations have certain strong points and certain weak points. There is no administration that says, "I have only strong points and I do not have any weak point". And there is no one who says, "All its activities are negative". This is not the case. All administrations have a combination of strong and weak points.

Of course, compared to previous administrations, it is better to make criticisms in a well-informed way. It is not appropriate to make criticisms in public. The criticisms that we level at the administration should be fair, respectful and sympathetic. Criticism should not mean catching someone red-handed and creating obstacles for them.

Second, I would like to say to executive officials that they should take the economy of resistance seriously. Well, the honorable President said that he will do this. Other officials too have said this more or less, but it there should be action: "And among those who rely on things other than action". It should not be the case that we say, "we will do this", but we act slowly. The focus of the economy of resistance is on increasing domestic production and strengthening the domestic economy. This leads to economic progress. Economic progress is achieved with production. It is achieved by activating the domestic capacities of the country. It is not achieved with anything else.

An important piece of advice on the issue of the economy of resistance is addressed to banks. Banks should play their roles. They should coordinate their activities with the policies on the economy of resistance and with the administration's plans in this area. They can play their roles - positive roles. Of course, they can play a negative role as well.

I would like to offer a very important piece of advice to the industrial sector. The officials in charge of this sector should make efforts. They should increase their efforts and they should identify the capacities. There are many capacities in the country and they should activate them.

As for the agricultural sector, agriculture has a vital significance. It is necessary for the administration and governmental policies to adopt a supportive outlook towards the agricultural sector. This supportive outlook exists all over the world. The agricultural sector is supported by governments. Therefore, the existing problems in the area of agriculture should be removed. The problems of farmers and stockbreeders should be resolved. Sometimes, we receive certain complaints in this regard. One becomes upset and sad about the problems that they have.

The third piece of advice for the administration: the administration's slogan is moderation. Moderation is a very good slogan. We too stress moderation. Extremism is condemned by us and it is bad. The piece of advice that I would like to offer is that you should take care not to let certain people sideline religious orientations with the slogan of moderation. Some people are doing this and I see it on the political scene of the country. Some people are trying to sideline those religious orientations that are prepared to face danger sooner than everyone else. They are doing this with the slogan of moderation and avoidance of extremism. It is these religious orientations that support administrations - in the real sense of the word - during problems.

Islam is the manifestation of moderation: ﴾And those who are with him are strong against unbelievers, but compassionate amongst each other﴿ [The Holy Quran, 48: 29]. This is moderation. ﴾Fight the unbelievers who gird you about﴿ [The Holy Quran, 9: 123]. This is moderation. Enjoining to do good and forbidding evil is moderation as well. Moderation is comprised of such things. The meaning of moderation is not that we prevent religious individuals, orientations and groups from doing things that they are responsible for.

Another piece of advice is addressed to political orientations and the press. I have a piece of advice for the brothers and officials in charge of political organizations and the press. You should be careful. A tumultuous environment is not to the advantage of the country. Some individuals should not get on the people's nerves. One witnesses that these people do such things. Psychological security is important for the people. They should not reinforce the environment of quarrels and differences. They should not repeat the enemies' statements either.

I read many newspapers every day, as I read many other things. Sometimes, there are certain statements and headlines in newspapers that are perfect for such and such an American newspaper. Surprisingly, such statements exist in American and non-American newspapers as well and these newspapers are sent for us. You should be careful. Such statements and headlines are not appropriate.

A sensitive issue that exists in the present time is the nuclear issue. The statements that the honorable President made today were very good and correct. The other side has offered us two options: death or fever. It wants to force us into accepting the latter. For example, on the issue of enrichment, their goal is to make the Islamic Republic satisfied with 10,000 SWUs. But they have begun from 500, 1000. Approximately, 10,000 SWUs are the product of 10,000 centrifuges - the ones that we already have. This is their goal. Officials tell us that we need about 190,000 SWUs. It is possible that we will not need this number of SWUs this year and in two, five years from now, but this is the definite need of the country. And the needs of the country should be met.

The statements that the Americans make on this issue are untruthfull. A country needs nuclear energy. It has managed to achieve this science and technology on its own, with its own efforts and follow-up, without stealing it from others and without colluding with other people. Now, they are persisting that we should not have it. Well, why? What are the reasons behind this "we should not".

They say that they are afraid of a nuclear bomb. First, non-proliferation has its own ways and this is alright. Second, if someone is supposed to be concerned about the issue of nuclear weapons, that someone is not America. America itself has several thousand nuclear warheads and nuclear bombs and it has used them. Well, what is it to you? Who are you to be concerned whether a country will have access to a nuclear weapon or not? However, we can give guarantees to those organizations that are in charge of such affairs. Of course, these guarantees have already been given. That is to say, it is clear that we are not after nuclear weapons. Perhaps, they themselves know this as well. So, the essence of what they are saying is untruthfull.

Of course, we believe in our negotiating team. We are sure that they will not be satisfied with transgression against the rights and dignity of the country and the people. We are sure that they will not allow this to happen. The issue of enrichment is an important issue. Moreover, the issue of research and development should definitely receive attention. Another issue is preserving the organizations and sites that the enemy cannot destroy. They place emphasis on Fordo because it is not accessible to them. They say, "You should not have a site that we cannot destroy and harm". Is this not ridiculous?

The last issue is the issue of the region and Iraq which is, in fact, a fitna. By Allah's favor, the religious people of Iraq will manage to extinguish and destroy this fitna. By Allah's favor, regional nations will move towards growth and material and spiritual transcendence on a daily basis.

Dear God, by the blessedness of Mohammad (pbuh&hh) and his household (a.s.), make what we said and heard serve You and Your path. Accept from us what we said and heard. Dear God, help us succeed in making efforts, showing diligence and doing sincere work.

Dear God, by the blessedness of Mohammad (pbuh&hh) and his household (a.s.), bestow on us the requirements for satisfying You. Do not deprive us of Your mercy and forgiveness in this auspicious month. Associate the pure souls of martyrs and the immaculate soul of our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) with Your saints.

Dear God, by the blessedness of Mohammad (pbuh&hh) and his household (a.s.), make us be among Your thankful and patient servants.

Greetings be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings