In a meeting this evening (Monday) with the heads of the three branches of the government, the establishment’s officials and staff and a group of the country’s managers, Leader of the Islamic Republic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei described the trust of all the voters in the ballot box of the Islamic establishment election as the most important reality of the May 19 election and stressing the importance of the creation of a new climate of cooperation, struggle and effort for the progress of Iran and the promotion of the establishment, added, “For the proper governance of the country and the management of opportunities and threats, while using experiences, the most important of which are national unity and distrust in the US, correct criteria for decision-making must be relied upon and the most important of these criteria is ‘the fulfillment of real national interests’ namely interests which are not in contradiction with the national and revolutionary identity of the nation.”    

At the beginning of his speech, Ayatollah Khamenei described the auspicious month of Ramadan as a golden and apt opportunity for “supplication before God Almighty” and “illuminating the hearts,” reiterating, “Achieving lofty goals and demands hinges upon connection with God and sincere and faithful efforts and if the Islamic and revolutionary society neglects the remembrance of and supplication to God, it will receive blows.”     

Taking a glance at the issues of the day regarding the “May 19 election,” the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said, “The election was a major achievement and showed the power of the revolution and the depth of the influence of the Islamic establishment in the hearts of the people, although global media outlets make no mention of this important point at all in their extensive propaganda.”    

He described the valuable deed of all the participants in the election as “the expression of confidence in the Islamic establishment,” saying, “The joint feat of the people, regardless of who they voted for, was that they ‘trusted’ the ballot box of the Islamic Republic and the massive movement stipulated in the Constitution, namely elections.” 

Criticizing some people who are after dividing the public with incorrect interpretations, Ayatollah Khamenei added, “The great job of the people in the elections must not be ruined and spoiled with bickering and dividing the people.”  

Pointing to the brazen moves by the Americans in intensifying the sanctions and beating the drums of hostility more than ever after the Iranian presidential election, the Leader added, “Against these enmities, a new climate of cooperation, struggle and effort must be created for reading the common objective of ‘the country’s progress and promotion of the Islamic Republic’ and everyone must join in and have a share in this atmosphere.”  

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution described “struggle and resistance” as the prerequisite for the realization of objectives and bringing the enemy down to its knees, saying, “Everyone must help the officials of the country and the officials, while caring for the people’s wellbeing, must also cooperate in various areas with each other.”

Ayatollah Khamenei stressed, “My policy has always been and will be supporting the sitting administrations and this will continue to hold true henceforth.”

Launching into his main argument, namely how to properly manage the country and identify the correct path from the straying one, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said, “In the first step, the proper management of the country requires the establishment of ‘the criteria for decision making and decision shaping’ and in the next step, needs, ‘the utilization of the experiences of the past 38 years’.”   

Elaborating upon the criteria for correct decision making, Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to “national interests” as the main criteria, adding, “Of course, national interests are truly national interests when they are not in contradiction with ‘the national and revolutionary identity of the Iranian nation’.”  

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution reiterated, “National interests must be aligned with national identity, not national identity becoming a function of issues under the title of national interests, because in reality such cases are ‘illusionary interests’ not national interests.” 

Continuing, Ayatollah Khamenei clarified the meaning of national identity and added, “Iran’s national identity is shaped upon the three elements of ‘being a Muslim, being a revolutionary and historic depth’ and in defining national identity these three elements must surely be taken into account.” 

He said, “The officials of the country, whether the honorable administration, the Judiciary, the Legislature and all of those making macro decisions, must avoid any decision that is suspected of being incompatible or at variance with the Revolution and the history of the Iranian nation.”   

Stressing that the definition provided for national interests does not mean ignoring the advances of humanity or depriving oneself from these progresses, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution added, “Unfortunately, these days it has become common place to extensively interpret some of the comments made by officials. The definition of national interests in the framework of Islamic, revolutionary, and historical identity must not be interpreted as the closure of the path for making use of the advances of humanity.”   

Ayatollah Khamenei drew attention to one important point regarding national identity and stressed, “Our national interests must not be placed under foreign imposition.” 

Stressing that arrogant powers use different means to impose their will, he added, “One of these tactics is the fulfillment of the interests of the arrogant powers under the title of ‘international norms’, so that through this approach they would accuse independent and anti-tyranny countries of violating norms.”   

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution said, “In their recent remarks about Iran, the Americans have been raising the issue of ‘instability in the region’ under the rubric of international norms. Responding to them, it must be firstly said, ‘what does this have to do with you?’ And secondly, you and your agents are the reason behind the instability of the region.”  

Pointing to the role of the Americans in founding the Daesh group and the military and preparatory support for this group, Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated, “The claim of forming a coalition against Daesh is a lie; of course, Americans are against ‘an uncontained Daesh,’ but if anyone would want to truly destroy Daesh, they (Americans) will counter them (anti-Daesh forces).”  

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution cited the US president’s recent allegation of Iran supporting terrorism and the Americans’ human rights accusations against Iran as being within the framework of norm-fabrication to ensure the interests of the arrogant powers and reiterated, “It’s truly ridiculous that the Americans speak of human rights alongside the tribal and medieval Saudi rulers and level allegations against the Islamic Republic, which is the manifestation of democracy, at a place where there is no trace of democracy and this will remain as a historic stain of disgrace upon their foreheads.”    

In the next part of his speech, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution turned to the explanation of how to use experiences in the correct governance of the country and the management of opportunities and threats.

The Leader pointed to the “decisive impact of national unity and integrity” in the successes of the past four decades, adding, “This successful experience must be used in the management of the country; of course, unity is not at odds with expressing opposition to the policies of government institutions, but there should be no bickering and dispute in the field of the country’s macro issues.” 

Ayatollah Khamenei described “the bipolarization of the country” and “the bisection of the people” as a dangerous experience, adding, “In the [Persian calendar year] 1359 (1980-1981), the then president bipolarized the society and divided the people into two groups of opponents and proponents. That experience must not be repeated.”

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution described “an open distancing [oneself] from the enemy” as facilitating national unity, adding, “The officials must seriously distance [themselves] from the foreign enemy and its internal agents.”  

Recalling the bitter experience of the incidents of the year 1388 (2008 post-election unrest), the Leader said, “In those incidents, some openly shouted slogans against the principle of the Revolution and religious beliefs and as there was no distinction against or distancing from them, the problems languished.”    

 “Reliance upon internal capacities and prioritizing national production” was another point that the Leader of the Revolution alluded to within the topic of the correct management of the country.

He added, “The country possesses young, very good and efficient human resources which have shown their capacities in the scientific advances such as in nuclear energy and the helpful experience of benefiting from the youth must be used in the other sectors of the country.” 

Ayatollah Khamenei described “distrust in the enemy” as another fundamental and serious experience that must be fully attended to in the management of the country. 

Ayatollah Khamenei added, “We could have not trusted the enemy but at some points for some reasons, for example to strip the Americans of excuses, we backed down and of course the excuse was not eliminated and we suffered a blow.”

The Leader of the Revolution stressed, “Wherever the job involves working with foreigners, one should set out with precision, scrupulousness and complete care and speak with such tone and language that trust in the enemy is not sensed in it, because it will have negative effects both inside and outside [the country].” 

Pointing to the issue of JCPOA (nuclear agreement with the P5+1), Ayatollah Khamenei said, “We trusted and trust the officials who followed this issue, because we believe them to be faithful and belonging to us, but in some cases in this issue, due to trusting the words of the opposite side, we overlooked some issues or did not make the necessary effort; therefore, some gaps remained that the enemy is using.”  
The Leader of the Revolution pointed to the letter by [Foreign Minister] Mr. Zarif to European officials regarding the instances of the violation of the JCPOA by the Americans and added, “The foreign minister is not against negotiations, but because he is a ‘religious, conscientious and responsible’ human being, he elaborated the various instances of the ‘violation of the spirit and body of the JCPOA’.”

Ayatollah Khamenei urged “the committee overseeing the implementation of the JCPOA” to fully and carefully carry out their duties and added, “In agreeing to the JCPOA, we have identified clear conditions in writing and the committee overseeing the implementation must take care that these conditions are fully honored.”  

The Leader reiterated, “When the enemy is brazenly standing against you, he will construe any shortcoming by you as a sign of weakness and desperation and will grow more impudent; therefore, there must be complete vigilance.” 

“Boosting the military and security might” was another point that the Leader of the Revolution highlighted in drawing up the do’s and don’ts of the “correct governance of the country and the management of threats and opportunities.”

He added, “It is no secret that the US, in order to eliminate the elements of Iran’s might, would hate the IRGC (Islamic Revolution Guards Corps) and the Quds Force and set terms and conditions that the IRGC should not exist and the Basij [volunteer forces] should not interfere and that we must act as such (based on the enemy’s will) in regional issues and comments like that; however, all officials, against the enemy’s will, must boost the elements of Iran’s might and dignity, namely the Armed Forces, the IRGC, Basij and all of the faithful and revolutionary elements.”   

Continuing, Ayatollah Khamenei turned to stating some important and effective economic points for the proper management of the country.

He reiterated, “In his remarks, the honorable president enumerated some cases that “must happen,” but the target and executive of the majority of these cases are himself and the administration’s work team.”  

Pointing to the impact of attracting internal and external investors on the management of the country’s economy, the Leader of the Revolution described “true attention to villages such as the creation of rural industries” as the solution to some issues such as shanty town dwelling and the resultant corruption and added, “Creating facilities for the easy transport of village goods and for the villagers is very important.”   

“The correct management of imports such as strictly preventing the import of goods which harms the similar local product,” “people using home-made products as the necessary grounds for the promotion of the quality of these products,” “combating smuggling,” “the correct and worthy implementation of Article 44 [of the Constitution]” and the issue of “investment security” were other points that the Leader of the Islamic Revolution pointed to in this section of this remarks. 

Wrapping up his economic comments, the Leader said, “We officials have spoken at length about economic issues in the past several years, but now time has come for action; therefore, “offering a clear and comprehensive roadmap” must be one of the first steps that the administration should take. 

Ayatollah Khamenei described “cyberspace” as one of the other important and effective issues in correctly managing the country.

The Leader of the Revolution reiterated, “An avalanche of issues that are against the values and national interests, correct and incorrect content, wrong or accurate information and even pseudo-intelligence plunges upon the minds of the society. This atmosphere must be controlled, but the nation must not be deprived of cyberspace.”   

Criticizing the shortcomings in the creation of a national information network, he added, “With the creation of a national data network, a number of countries, while observing their red lines and properly controlling the cyberspace, have benefitted from the Internet for fulfilling their interests.”

Ayatollah Khamenei added, “Everyone should be able to use the benefits of cyberspace and in areas that are not to the detriment of the country, public opinion and particularly the youth, Internet speed must be raised and anything else necessary must be implemented.” 

The issue of “the US” was the last topic that the Leader of the Islamic Republic touched upon, adding, “Most of the issues with the US are fundamentally irresolvable, because the US’s problem with us does not emanate from issues such as nuclear energy or human rights, but their problem is with the very essence of the Islamic Republic.”

Ayatollah Khamenei said the emergence of an Islamic establishment in an important region and in a rich land such as Iran, where it took up independent policies, is the main reason behind the US’s animosity toward the Islamic Republic. The leader added, “They are against the principle of the country’s independence and even if a government had been in power in the country that had not been religious or revolutionary but had been independent, there would have been opposition to and conflicts with it.” 

Pointing to the plentiful resources and facilities of Islamic Iran, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said, “Powers whose job is encroachment upon countries are not prepared to give up such a bite, but the Islamic Revolution will not allow this bite to go down their throats.”  

Ayatollah Khamenei cited issues such as “human rights, terrorism, the claim of destabilization by Iran in the region” as the US’s excuses against the Islamic establishment and reiterated, “The US itself is a terrorist (state), a terrorist nurturer and the supporter of such a regime as the Zionist regime, which is the core of terrorism and was created through terror and tyranny from the first day; therefore, it’s impossible to come to terms with the US.” 

Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated in the same regard, “Vague and two-sided remarks must not be made, because that would result in abuse, rather the issues and stances must be clearly and explicitly stated.”  

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution reiterated, “The Americans must know that the Islamic Republic would not abandon stances such as fighting tyranny and defending Palestine and will not give up efforts to restore the rights of the nation.” 

Concluding his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei described the Iranian nation as a lively nation and the Islamic Revolution as young and progressive and reiterated, “These conditions herald a good future to the nation and we hope that the conditions of the people improve day by day and they repel the threats in the best way.” 

Prior to the remarks of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, thanking the people and the Leader of the Islamic Revolution over the shaping of the epic 1396 (2017) election feat, the president said, “The nation is the victor in the election and the era of rivalries and bickering has come to an end. Today, we have to pay attention to the demands and requests of the people.”

The president enumerated the removal of economic problems particularly employment and the improvement of livelihood as the most important demands of the people, adding, “Undoubtedly, if we all stand side by side behind the great Leader of the Revolution, we would be able to overcome the problems.” 

Stating that the ill-wishers in the world such as the US are more than ever concerned about the greatness of Iran, Mr. Rouhani reiterated, “We should await new plots and conspiracies by the enemies; of course these plots are nothing new for the Iranian nation and our nation has prevailed over their machinations in tougher and more complicated incidents and will also be triumphant in the future.” 

In another part of his speech, pointing to the fact that the 11th administration is in its final weeks and the approaching launch of the activities of the 12th administration, the president elaborated on the services of the administration.  

Mr. Rouhani declared “controlling inflation and reducing it to single-digit,” “the economic growth of over eight percent,” “job creation, positive growth in the trade balance,” “the stability of the price of foreign currency,” “reduction in budget reliance upon oil and increasing reliance upon tax,” “increase in the production and export of oil and petrochemical products,” “natural gas delivery to nine thousand villages and water delivery to over five thousand villages and power delivery to all villages above ten households” and “the connection of 28 thousand villages to the Internet” as among the achievements of the 11th administration.   

Pointing to the naming of the current year as “Resistance economy; Production-Job Creation”, the president said, “All the efforts in the 12th administration will be directed at materializing this slogan.”

Mr. Rouhani described the resolution of the issue of employment as requiring a major and national undertaking and stating that for the realization of the sixth development plan in employment more than 900 thousand jobs must be created per year, reiterated, “To create jobs we need investment, banking reforms, an increase in youth skills and the development of science-based companies.”  

The president cited support for the impoverished and underprivileged as one of the other important agendas of the 12th administration and stressing the importance of the issue of social justice, reiterated, “The income gap between the first decile and the tenth decile of the society is about 14 times and this should reach a reasonable level.”      

At the end of his remarks, Mr. Rouhani expressed gratitude to the Iranian nation for their active efforts and participation and to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution for his support and guidance.

At the end of the meeting, the Maghrib and Isha prayers were led by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the attendees broke their fast alongside him.