Khamenei: National Interests Should Utilize Experiences Such as Distrust of America

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, stated that securing national interests should be the "criterion for decision-making" by officials, expressing that the most important experiences to be used for the proper administration of the country are "distrust of America" and "national unity." In remarks made on the evening of Monday, June 12, in a gathering of government officials and other institutions of the Islamic Republic, Khamenei also noted that "true national interests" are those that "do not contradict the national and revolutionary identity of the nation." The leader of the Islamic Republic identified "being Muslim, being revolutionary, and historical depth" as the three elements constituting "Iran's national identity" and subsequently urged officials from the three branches of government to avoid decisions that "raise suspicions of being foreign to Islam, the revolution, and the history of the Iranian nation or contradict them." Over the past four decades since its establishment, the Islamic Republic has always introduced itself as one of the main bases of Islam, and conformity or opposition to what is referred to in the literature of Iranian officials as "Islamic-Iranian culture" has been a primary criterion for supporting or opposing executive programs in the country. Recently, the implementation of the UNESCO educational document known as 2030, which obligates governments to provide equal educational opportunities for various segments of society, has been halted due to the leader's opposition, although it continues to attract criticism from figures close to Ayatollah Khamenei. During the electoral campaigns, Hassan Rouhani accused his rivals of sending "false reports" about this document to the leader of the Islamic Republic and distributing "leaflets" in villages, raising issues that do not exist in the document. In response, the leader of Iran last week criticized the signing of this document again, implicitly responding to Hassan Rouhani that he received a "correct report" about this document. He also used the military term "fire at will" to call on "soft war officers" to take action and make decisions when there are "disruptions and shutdowns" in the central intellectual, cultural, and political apparatuses of the country. "The problem with America is with the essence of the Islamic Republic" Another part of Ayatollah Khamenei's remarks on Monday evening focused on the confrontation with the United States. The leader of the Islamic Republic stated that many issues with America are "fundamentally unsolvable" because, according to him, "the problem with America is not due to issues like nuclear energy and human rights, but rather their problem is with the essence of the Islamic Republic." He claimed that "the independent policies of the Islamic Republic" are the cause of American hostility and at the same time listed "not trusting the enemy" as one of the experiences that should be considered in governing the country. He mentioned that the JCPOA issue was "due to trusting the words of the other side, we overlooked some issues, and as a result, gaps remained that the enemy is currently exploiting." In recent years, the Islamic Republic's insistence on pursuing certain regional and international policies, including the controversial nuclear program, has led to Iran's isolation in international circles. During the nuclear negotiations, world powers repeatedly expressed hope that Iran could play a responsible and constructive role in global relations by resolving the nuclear issue. However, Iran's pursuit of its missile program and what is described as the Islamic Republic's "destabilizing" role in the region has continued to attract criticism from the United States and its allies, especially in the Middle East. Nevertheless, Ayatollah Khamenei stated on Monday that Americans raise the issue of "regional destabilization" in their statements about Iran, but "in response, it should be said that firstly, what connection does this region have with you, and secondly, the factor of regional instability is you and your agents." The leader of Iran also stated that "issues like human rights, terrorism, and the claim of creating instability in the region are excuses used by America against the Islamic system, and America itself is a terrorist, a terrorist supporter, and a supporter of a regime like the Zionist regime, which is the brain of terrorism." He then concluded that "one cannot come to terms with America." "America is opposed to uncontrolled ISIS" However, on the same day that Donald Trump, the President of the United States, spoke of "remarkable successes" in the fight against the Islamic State group, the leader of Iran accused the United States of "creating the ISIS group," stating that "the claim of forming a coalition against ISIS is a lie." He claimed that "Americans are opposed to uncontrolled ISIS, but if someone truly wants to destroy ISIS, they will confront them." This claim comes at a time when combating the Islamic State group, known as ISIS, was one of the priorities of Donald Trump's administration, and he had given the Department of Defense and military officials a one-month opportunity to prepare a plan to defeat ISIS. Exactly one month later, on March 1, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense announced that General James Mattis, the Secretary of Defense, had presented an initial plan for the "rapid defeat" of ISIS to the White House, which not only included confronting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria but went far beyond that. On Monday, Trump stated without providing details that "remarkable successes" have been achieved in the fight against ISIS, which he will elaborate on in a press conference in two weeks. The U.S. President, who recently traveled to Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Europe on his first foreign trip, called for greater cohesion in the fight against terrorism in separate meetings with leaders of Islamic countries and NATO member states, and his emphasis in this regard was met with solidarity from Islamic leaders and NATO leaders. He also emphasized in statements in Israel that Iran, alongside ISIS, is a threat to peace and stability in the region, and despite the JCPOA, "Iran's footprint in the region is evident; Iran is interfering in the region either by sending military personnel or through money and weapons."