“The Americans must be aware and, of course, are aware that the Islamic Republic of Iran has responses for the US threats of war and threats of an oil embargo, which will be carried out when necessary through the will of God,” Khamenehi told worshippers at last week’s Friday prayers at the campus of the University of Tehran.
Khamenehi normally delivers the sermon on the occasion of anniversary of the revolution.
US officials have repeatedly said, “All options are on the table” to contain Iran, Khamenehi noted, adding, “This phrase is a threat of war, but everyone knows that starting a war would harm the United States 10 times more than Iran.”
The fact that US officials have been using threatening language indicates their desperation in the face of Iran’s logic, Khamenehi said. “The US has no logic besides force and knows no way other than war to impose its will.”
The resort to threats and tyranny has discredited the United States in the eyes of the world—and in the eyes of the people of the United States as well, he said, adding, “There is no hope for the survival of a government whose reputation has been ruined in the eyes of its own people, and it will face no fate other than destruction and collapse.”
In the oddest remark of his sermon, Khamenehi said the imposition of sanctions demonstrates America’s inability to engage in dialogue. But Kha-menehi has refused to allow the government to engage in dialogue with the United States although Presidents Rafsanjani, Khatami and Ahmadi-nejad have reportedly all sought permission from him to open a dialogue with Washington.
The Leader advised the Iranian people not to be deceived by the “smile” and “false promises” of enemies, saying, “They renege on their promises easily; they break their promises; they do not act in line with what they say; they are not ashamed before God; they are not ashamed before God’s creatures; they are not ashamed before the negotiating side; they tell lies easily. I have proof.
“When the need arises, we will inform the world’s people about the remarks the Americans made, what the US president said in the letter he wrote [to Khamenehi], their reaction, and what they did with the content of the letters.”
He didn’t say when he would release that letter. Back in November, he said he had 100 documents that would be released “soon” proving that the United States carries out terrorist acts. Those documents have not been released yet.
Khamenehi spoke at length about sanctions, saying they were good for the Islamic Republic. “If there were no sanctions, we would not have been able to gain all these achievements,” he said. “The more they sanction us, the more we use our domestic capabilities,… and this is to our benefit.”
He said, “These sanctions are aimed at making Iran back down. But Iran will not back down. These sanctions are aimed at dealing a blow to us, but, in fact, they are of benefit to us.”
Several weeks ago, President Ahmadi-nejad admitted that sanctions were having a painful impact on Iran.