US goals in intensification of economic pressure against Iran

The Leader of Islamic Revolution, in an address to the pilgrims of the Holy Shrine of the 8th Infallible Successor to Prophet Mohammad, Imam Reza (Peace be upon him) in the holy city of Mashhad, in the beginning of the new Iranian solar calendar year, pointed out that the enemies of Iranian nation intend to somehow dishearten people from the sacred Islamic system via ratcheting up economic pressures on Islamic Iran.

He reminded that the foes of Iranian people, throughout a number of years, have been hell-bent on separating the Iranian nation from the sacred Islamic system, but to no avail.

For more than three decades, the US and European Union have imposed different types of sanctions against Islamic Iran. Although these embargoes left negative impacts on Iran’s economy; they have also made Iran’s economy more resilient, and Iranian nation more determined to make further efforts. Undoubtedly, topics of concern such as price hikes, recession, unemployment, and the community’s focus on import of goods are considered as drawbacks for an independent country. These problems are partly due to sanctions, global economic meltdown, and unconventional fall of global oil prices. However, the same problems maintain a different definition from the view of the enemies of Islamic Iran, and those, who want to deal a blow against a country and/or force independent nations into submission; use these topics as a means to dent hopes, and to ultimately provoke people’s distrust toward the ruling system.

Undoubtedly, based on this standpoint, the foes of sacred Islamic system never intend to portray the positive aspects of the sacred Islamic establishment, and their strategy is to conceal the strengths, and to aggrandize the drawbacks via West’s propaganda campaign. In fact, their intention is to obstruct progress with imposition of sanctions; and to engage the sacred Islamic system with marginal issues; distancing the sacred Islamic establishment from implementation of infrastructural measures. In such an atmosphere, the satellite media and networks play an important role in intensification of psychological warfare, and instillation of despair. These satellite media outlets continuously assess sanctions, and upon magnification of drawbacks; are intent on displaying the country’s economy as passive, vulnerable, and oil-dependent. Throughout the recent years, these challenges have pushed the economies of countries, such as Venezuela and Nigeria toward the brink of collapse, due to their mounting dependence.

Meanwhile, this current should be taken seriously, given that today the psychological warfare can be more destructive than military action. This is because within the battlefield, the enemy is evident and appears as an invader; while separation of people from the ruling system, and falsely displaying major economic policies as insufficient, is a masterminded plot, which is intent on somehow stirring despair.

Meanwhile, how can this threat be turned into an opportunity?

Throughout the years, despite the imposition of illegal sanctions on Iran, the sacred Islamic establishment has shown that it is possible for a nation to make resounding achievements, without any dependence on the US and/or other global powers.

In the meantime, the Islamic Republic of Iran has made the necessary arrangements for dealing with enmities against the Iranian nation; foreseeing foe’s plots, and prioritizing resistance economy in order to dispel the economic challenges.

The fact of the matter is that the victory of Iran’s Islamic Revolution is the most important political development in the contemporary history of Middle East and the World of Islam. Victory of the Islamic Revolution, under the leadership of the Founder of Islamic Republic of Iran, late Imam Khomeini (May his soul rest in peace) changed the regional and international political equations, leading to the collapse of the US foreign policy in the three strategic domains of world order; Middle Eastern regional domain; and Iran’s political geographical realm.

Thus, the post-revolution years have been highly sensitive times for the US, which has made strenuous efforts to regain its past power and influence via adoption of a number of approaches and techniques, or even a change of strategy. To this end, the US hatched conspiracies against the sacred Islamic system, and contacted the anti-revolutionaries. The US measures to dishearten the Iranian nation included psychological warfare; intensification of economic sanctions; and presentation of baseless accusations against Islamic Iran.

This strategy was intent on demoralizing people, and causing a rift between people and the ruling system. Throughout these years, the US Congress voiced support for the seditious currents in Iran, earmarking $20m in a futile bid to topple the sacred Islamic establishment.

The US-based Newsweek Magazine, in an article, alleged that a new revolt is taking shape in Iran.

The US and Zionist regime spy agencies, CIA and MOSSAD, placed a plan for coordination of the opponent groups in Iran, on their agenda.

In the past three decades, the US and its propaganda campaign have made efforts to falsely portray the Islamic Revolution as inefficient and have baselessly claimed that the Islamic Revolution has failed to meet people’s needs.

Undoubtedly, one of the ways to turn threats into opportunities is the identification of the enemy and taking the initiative to make use of all capacities, especially economic potentials.

The Leader of Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, has on several occasions referred to the goals of the enemies from intensification of sanctions against Iran, while putting emphasis on reinforcement of economic infrastructure. The Leader of Islamic Revolution presented a number of long-term and shot-term plans, clarifying the resistance economy role model, coupled with growth. Based on this necessity, the Leader of Islamic Revolution named the new Iranian solar calendar year as the Year of Resistance Economy: Production and Employment.

MR/ME