Force, Threats, Sanctions Futile, Iran Reminds US

The Iranian president held a meeting with a group of American foreign policy intellectuals on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly in New York on Monday.

In response to a question about the nuclear agreement and the prospect of Iran-US relations, Raisi cited the record of the US government's violation of the JCPOA despite the full implementation of obligations by Iran, and noted, "With the change of the government in the US and the declaration of readiness to return to its commitments, the Islamic Republic of Iran announced its readiness and pursued negotiations seriously for a good agreement, but after some time it became clear that the opposite parties did not adhere to their commitments".

Referring to the miscalculation of the US in the riots, the president said, "The American government, due to the wrong advice of some seemingly Iranian mercenary elements, as well as the wrong estimates of the spy services, abandoned the negotiations and set its heart on the results of the riots, while the Islamic Republic of Iran is now a strong tree and these impulses have no effect on its stability."

Raisi considered the victory of the Iranian nation against the combined war as a continuation of the national victories against all kinds of past enmities, such as the victory in the Holy Defense and also overcoming the cruel sanctions, and added, "The ill-wishers of the Iranian nation sought to repeat the Syrian model in Iran, but they were wrong because they have still not known the people of Iran and the Islamic Revolution."

Referring to the renewed desire of the US to resume negotiations after the failure of the unrest project, the president noted, "Negotiations were conducted by some countries, and the recent exchange of prisoners was one of its effects."

In response to a question about Trump's crime in the assassination of Lt. General Qassem Soleimani, the Iranian president paid tribute to the late general as the commander of the fight against terrorism in the region, adding, "Martyr Soleimani was the commander of the fight against terrorism and ISIS, and if he hadn't stopped ISIS, terrorism would be spreading all over Europe."

Raisi denounced the assassination of General Soleimani as an example of state terrorism and called for the trial of the perpetrators of this horrible crime.

He then emphasized the security of international waterways and said, "The presence of Americans in the Persian Gulf and the tampering with ships and their seizure causes insecurity in the region."

Asked about the effects of Iran's membership in BRICS, the president said, "Considering Iran's outstanding capacities and position in the region, Iran's joining this group will make it more powerful."

"Regarding sanctions, Biden said at the beginning of his career that he does not accept Trump's method of withdrawing from the JCPOA. So far, we have not seen any different action in practice. The expectation is that if the US government says it adheres to its commitments in words, it will show its adherence in practice,” Raisi added.

He then considered the International Atomic Energy Agency's declaration that Iran's nuclear activities are peaceful as a clear reason for the cruelty of the sanctions against Iran and said, "The Islamic Republic of Iran, before any law, regulations and supervision, according to the fatwa of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, considers any production and use of nuclear weapons prohibited."

Asked about the status of women in Iran, the president listed the cases of success of women in various scientific and sports fields as well as their effective and role-playing presence in the political, managerial and social sectors, saying the West's abuse of the last year's events was a deceptive cover to defend the rights of women.

"In the incident last year when a girl had an accident, all medical investigations showed that she was not hit by the police, but did the Western and American media agree to reflect this fact?" he asked.

Raisi stated that the highest number of female prisoners in the world belongs to the United States and added, "Recently in the United States, a young pregnant woman was killed by the American police on suspicion of stealing from a store, which is one of the 1,200 cases that occurred last year. She was killed by the American police, but why does the American media not search for the root cause and clarify the details of such murders?" he added.

In response to another question about the war in Ukraine, Raisi stated, "We are against the war and we are ready to mediate in order to end it, but the taxes of the American people pay for war-mongering and to fill the pockets of arms factories from the sale of weapons in this field."

Raisi dismissed the claim of Iran's provision of weapons to Russia, adding, "Our advice to the American government is to stop fighting and sanction nations. Historical findings show that in the last 250 years, America has not been at war for only 20 years."

He also stressed that Iran has never left the negotiation table because it has clear and firm logic for its approaches and actions. "Iran's released resources in South Korea were Iran's right and America must answer why it cruelly stopped the right of our nation," he stated. 

"America must have understood by now that using the language of force, either in the form of sanctions or threats against the Iranian nation, is not an effective tool, of course, our judgment will be based on actions and what can gain our trust will be changing this coercive behavior and acting based on commitments, which America has not been successful in this field so far," Raisi concluded.