Khamenei: Hostilities Will Not Be Resolved by Compromise

While the President of Iran has announced that the people of Iran seek a reduction in "tension" with the United States, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic reiterated that "the enemy seeks the surrender of the Islamic system, and by compromising with him, hostilities will not be resolved." According to the website of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Thursday, October 1, he urged the armed forces of the Islamic Republic to "increase their readiness to create such power that enemies would not even dare to entertain the thought of aggression." Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized that the "rise" of the Islamic Republic is, according to him, "intolerable for the system of domination" and added: "The idea that if we do not say certain things or do certain actions and consider the enemy, hostilities will decrease, is a false notion." These statements from the Supreme Leader come at a time when Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, had stated on August 19 that "we should not think that after reaching an agreement we can speak and act however we want and that others will not react to this change in our behavior." Rouhani's remarks prompted reactions from close associates of the Supreme Leader, with Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards, emphasizing that this institution "will never allow the growth and implementation of a thought" in Iran that, according to him, "wants to open new avenues for foreign influence in the country with these words." The Supreme Leader has repeatedly warned about what he calls "America's attempts to infiltrate Iran" following the Vienna nuclear agreement. However, Hassan Rouhani, in an interview with CNN, stated that the people of Iran want a decrease in "tension" between Iran and the United States. He emphasized that during his presidency, Iran and the U.S. "became closer" while referring to his campaign slogans advocating constructive engagement with the world. Rouhani also commented on shaking hands with Barack Obama, the President of the United States, saying: "In my mind, these symbolic gestures are not about shaking hands... greeting each other or writing letters to each other. Of course, we write letters sometimes, he writes sometimes, and I write sometimes." The handshake between Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, and Barack Obama on Wednesday triggered a strong reaction from Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesman for the judiciary, and several members of parliament.