Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said enemies are seeking to deprive Iranians of peaceful nuclear energy, stressing once again that the Islamic Republic has never sought nuclear weapons.

He made the remarks in a meeting via video conference with thousands of people from Iran’s East Azarbaijan Province on Thursday, marking the anniversary of the popular uprising of the people of Tabriz, which took place on February 18, 1978.

“You see how oppressively the enemy front is focusing on the issue of our nuclear energy. They [the enemy] impose sanctions [on us] because of a nuclear energy [program] that they know is peaceful. And whatever they may say about Iran being a certain amount of time away from producing a [nuclear] bomb is nonsensical and meaningless,” the Leader said.

“They know we are not seeking that; that we are not looking for a nuclear weapon. We are looking to benefit from nuclear energy in peaceful ways. They know this. [But] They do not want the Iranian nation to achieve such an outstanding scientific progress and that’s why they are pressuring us,” Ayatollah Khamenei added.

The Leader said that Iran will urgently need nuclear energy, and that if the country fails to take action today, it will be too late in 20 years.

On enemy tactics against Iran

He warned that enemies have been attempting to make the Iranians, especially the youth, stray from the path of the Islamic Revolution using two tactics: economic pressure and a smear campaign of lies and allegations against the pillars of the Revolution.

“The enemies are using two tools to divide the people and the establishment and to engineer the people’s views and thoughts: economic hostility and media enmity,” said the Leader, calling on the nation and the youth to counter the two conspiracies.

He added that the enemies “level accusations against the centers that play a role in the Revolution’s progress.”

Ayatollah Khamenei explained that economic pressure can be foiled through hard work at home, diplomatic efforts and neutralization of the sanctions imposed on the country.

The Leader praised the Iranian negotiators for working on the diplomatic front to persuade the Westerners to lift the sanctions placed on the nation.

“However, the major task is to neutralize the sanctions through [engaging in] domestic production and economic activities on the one side, and foiling the enemy’s media campaign and mudslinging, on the other,” he said.

‘People, not guns, led Revolution to victory’

Ayatollah Khamenei highlighted the role of the people in the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

“The Islamic Revolution emerged victorious thanks to the presence of the Iranian nation and not guns and political ploys and playing,” the Leader said.

The Leader praised as “astonishing” the infrastructural progress that the country has made in the years that ensued the Islamic Revolution.

As a case in point, he pointed to Iran’s scientific achievements in the past four decades and said the country’s growth rate has been “multiple times higher than that of the rest of the world.”

The Leader said the nation’s perseverance has been fruitful not just inside the country but also across the region.

“You witness today that the resistance movement in regional countries is growing and the grandeur of America and [global] arrogance is broken. The nations are speaking out against America. We should appreciate this and keep up the Revolution’s progress,” the Leader noted.

Ayatollah Khamenei also hailed the massive participation of the Iranian people in recent celebrations marking the 43rd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, which overthrew the former US-backed Pahlavi regime, despite the coronavirus pandemic, economic problems and the campaign of lies launched by foreigners.

He said the Islamic Revolution’s goals were bringing about social justice, power, a Muslim society and, ultimately, a modern Islamic civilization, calling on everyone to make efforts toward fulfilling the objectives.