Rouhani: I Will Not Allow Extremists to Discourage This Nation

Continuing the criticisms from members of the 11th government against opponents of the nuclear agreement, Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, described the opponents as a group of "extremists" on Saturday, September 21, and stated that he would not allow this "group" to discourage the nation. In a meeting with managers of national cooperative unions, Rouhani elaborated on the economic problems caused by sanctions, particularly the banking sanctions that hindered oil sales, and implicitly attributed the drop in oil prices to the deliberate policy of Saudi Arabia, which aims to pressure Iran and Russia. According to Iranian news agencies, Rouhani noted the arguments of the opponents of the nuclear agreement, saying, "It is true that the people resisted, and this is commendable, but the nation must know that these sanctions have chained the Iranian economy, and the JCPOA means breaking all these chains." Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, also stated on Friday that the opponents of the nuclear agreement consider endangering the lives of 80 million people to be an act of courage. In his speech on Saturday, September 21, Rouhani called the country's dependence on oil and the state-run economy a major flaw of recent decades, stating that this situation has made the economy vulnerable to sanctions. Rouhani mentioned that at one time, the country's budget was 70 to 80 percent dependent on oil revenues, and last year, for various reasons, oil's share in the budget decreased to 33 percent, but it still meant that one-third of the budget relied on oil. He pointed out three ways in which oil sanctions have pressured the country. He considered the reduction of oil exports from 2.2 million barrels per day to one million barrels due to sanctions as the first pressure, stating that it was "not only an economic pressure but also a blow to national pride." Rouhani also mentioned that the severe reduction in oil exports has forced them to close oil wells, which will incur heavy costs to reopen after sanctions are lifted. He then referred to the second pressure, without naming Saudi Arabia, stating that "some oil-producing countries, which you know how they are dependent on Western governments, have reduced oil prices from $110 to $40 to pressure Iran and recently to pressure Russia." The Iranian president had previously accused Saudi Arabia of being responsible for the drop in global oil prices by opposing OPEC production cuts or increasing quotas for certain countries, including Iran. However, Saudi Arabia has rejected this criticism. Rouhani described the closure of the global banking network to Iran due to sanctions, which prevented Iran from receiving payment for its oil exports, as the third pressure. In his conclusion, Rouhani praised the Iranian nuclear negotiating team, calling them "heroes" who reached an agreement that "no one in history can say is not in line with the greatness and dignity of the Iranian nation." He added, referring to the opponents of the nuclear agreement, "Those who debate the words of this proud agreement... should know that I will not allow a group of extremists to discourage the hope of this nation."