Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, in a meeting with visiting Finnish President Sauli Niinistö on Wednesday, said the phenomenon of terrorism is one of the bitter calamities with which the human society is grappling. Describing mass killings, such as the massacre of the Yemeni people by Saudi Arabia, as the worst form of terrorism, the Leader emphasized, “Fighting against terrorism requires serious will on the part of all those with influence within international powers, and the world pundits, states and honorable powerful people of the world must think and take action to find a cure for this phenomenon.”
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that the remarks made and steps taken by the United States and some other governments in fighting terrorism were not serious, adding, “These governments assess all issues on the basis of their own interests and do not think about eradicating the scourge of terrorism whether in Iraq, or in Syria.”
Bringing an example of the lack of a serious determination to fight against terrorism, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution pointed to the massacre of the Yemeni people and noted, “Terrorism does not simply mean terrorist acts committed by unofficial groups, but mass killings of people by some governments such as the Saudi attack on people at a mourning procession in Yemen with hundreds of dead and injured people, are also among the worst types of terrorism, and despite the lapse of one year and seven months of such measures, no serious resolve to stand against them has been seen.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution described the position taken by the Islamic Republic of Iran on the resolution of the issue of Syria as logical and based on supporting the nation and the legitimate government of the country, saying, “America and some other states insist on changing the government of Syria, while to end the war [in the Arab country], the initiator [of the war] and warmongering agents must be determined [first].”
The Leader mentioned inattention by the United Nations to the issue of who began the invasion in the war launched by former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime against Iran as one of the factors, which caused that war to take long, noting, “Of course, many years after the end of the Imposed War, the then secretary general of the United Nations, who was a conscientious and brave person, introduced Saddam as the initiator of the war.”
Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei then took the incumbent UN secretary general to task from this standpoint and said, “The UN secretary general openly announced that since this organization is dependent on Saudi government’s money, it is not possible for it to condemn the massacre of Yemeni children, and this [issue] is indicative of the regretful moral state of international politicians, and we hope the next secretary general of the United Nations would be able to maintain independence of the body.”
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution also welcomed further cooperation between Iran and the government of Finland and emphasized, “Memoranda of understanding signed between the two governments must enter into force because lack of their implementation will have a negative impact on people’s mind.”
During the meeting, which was also attended by Iran's President Hassan Rouhani, Mr. Sauli Niinistö, the president of Finland, expressed satisfaction with his negotiations in Tehran and added, “Today, four memoranda of understanding were signed in different sectors and good steps were also taken in negotiations between the two countries’ trade delegations.”
Mr. Niinistö said, “These agreements will certainly not remain on paper and the two sides seek to get tangible results through their implementation just in the same way that Finland’s community of merchants and businesspeople is determined to start serious and effective cooperation with Iran.”
The president of Finland then pointed to global developments in the past 10 years and the spread of terrorism, and while describing the current situation of the world as turbulent, added, “Terrorism has arisen in new and big dimensions and has led to the homelessness of many humans and today, unfortunately, many children and mothers are being killed in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.”
Mr. Niinistö also upheld the Leader of the Islamic Revolution’s viewpoints on the issue of terrorism and noted, “Governments and the United Nations have not been successful in controlling and fighting terrorism.”
The Finnish president pointed to Iran's position and influence in the region and its major role in fighting terrorism, adding, “Iran has done its utmost to uproot terrorism and will certainly continue to do so.”