Khamenei: Stopping the Struggle against the United States Contravenes the Koran; Iranian Policy in the Middle East Is the Complete Opposite of U.S. Policy
and “the Aggressor’s” [the United States] policies.1 Click to enlarge
Translation of the Khamenei Infograph
U.S. Policy in the Region Is 180 Degrees Different from Iran’s Policy
Summary of the nuclear talks:
Whether or not this text [the nuclear deal] is approved, we will not abandon our support for our friends in the region.
In the meeting with the governmental leaders and ambassadors of Islamic countries [July 18, 2015] Ayatollah Khamenei addressed the situation of the countries of the region and said: The policy of the forces of arrogance [the United States and its allies] in the region is a treacherous policy.
In his sermons for Eid al-Fitr, the Supreme Leader also declared that Iran’s policy is to keep supporting its friends in the region. In this infograph, we surveyed the difference and the clash between the policy of Iran and that of the arrogance in some of the Islamic countries, in the spirit of the statements made by the spiritual Leader.
(Upper right): The policy of Iran – support for the oppressed and opposition to the wicked, strengthening Islamic states and preventing them from weakening one another
(Upper right): The policy of the arrogance – interference in the affairs of the countries and coercion of the people, making Islamic countries fear each other
In the lower section:
Syria
Iran: Support for a government whose values, goals, and desires are steadfastness against the Zionists [Israel]
The arrogance [United States]: Overthrowing the government that is known for most strongly resisting the Zionists
Iraq
Iran: Strengthening the government that was elected by the people and preserving this country’s territorial integrity
The arrogance [United States]: Weakening and overthrowing the government that was elected by the people, plans for the division of Iraq
Bahrain
Iran: Support for holding elections in Bahrain, support for the oppressed citizens of Bahrain [Bahrain’s Shiite majority is supported by Iran]
The arrogance [United States]: Propaganda about the existence of a rift between the Shiites and the Sunnis in Bahrain, support for terror attacks against the citizens of Bahrain
Palestine
Iran: Support for a referendum and the return of the Palestinians to their land
The arrogance [United States]: Support for the criminal and child-murdering Zionist regime
Lebanon
Iran: Safeguarding the resistance [Hizbullah]
The arrogance [United States]: Presenting a loyal and unselfish resistance group like Hizbullah as a terror group
Yemen
Iran: Support for the election of the government by the citizens of Yemen, condemnation of the crimes of the Saudis and the states that support the war against Yemen
The arrogance [United States]: Support for those attacking the citizens of Yemen
Libya
Iran: Condemnation of U.S. and Western interference
The arrogance [United States]: Obtaining oil and creating a base in Libya from which to monitor the future revolutionary governments in Egypt and Tunisia
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Commentary
Since the signing of the nuclear deal, the Iranian leadership with Supreme Leader Khamenei at the forefront has been affirming again and again that the deal has no connection with any other issue in the Middle East. They maintain that the antagonistic relationship between Iran and the United States will not change.
Khamenei also keeps declaring that Iranian and U.S. interests, in the Middle East in particular and in the world in general, are completely opposed to each other. Iran, which continues to view the United States as an enemy and as the Great Satan, will keep fighting it even after the signing of the deal, and will keep helping its friends in the Middle East (Syria, Hizbullah, Hamas, etc.).
Khamenei, along with the religious-political and military leadership, keeps emphasizing Iran’s expanding influence in the Middle East and asserting that this is a reality that cannot be changed.
In a meeting with Iranian students on July 11, 2015 (during which calls of “Death to America,” “Death to Israel,” and “Death to Britain” were voiced), Khamenei underlined that Iran’s influence in the region is spiritual and that the leaders of “reactionary Arab states” (meaning the Gulf states) have, in closed-door meetings with the Americans, been calling for pressure on Iran to counteract this influence, with the United States responding that it can do nothing to check Iran’s growing power.2
Khamenei added that during the meeting, students asked him how the struggle against the United States, or the “fight against arrogance,” would fare after the signing of the deal. Would it be suspended? He replied:
“The fight against arrogance, the fight against the imperialist system, cannot be suspended; [this struggle] is part of our mission, part of our fundamental duty, one of the pillars of the Islamic Revolution…. If the fight against arrogance is not waged, it means we are not acting according to the tenets of the Koran [راساسمبانیقرآنی ]. The fight against arrogance cannot be brought to an end…and the United States is the most perfect example of the definition of arrogance.”2
Khamenei’s sermons are often accompanied by chants of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” and in the sermon he gave at the end of Ramadan, a short time after the deal was signed, he indeed expressed support for these chants. The U.S. secretary of state said that the chants and the ongoing Iranian enmity toward the United States were “very disturbing,” and tried without success to make excuses for them.
“The people participated enthusiastically in these massive rallies, despite soaring temperatures and in the state of fasting, and that too after keeping vigil all night on the blessed 23rd night of Ramadan – the night when God decrees the fate of humanity for the year. These are the people of Iran who flock to the scenes whenever needed in order to show their devotion to God Almighty. They are ready to defend the ideals of the Islamic Revolution. The vociferous shouts of “Down with the US and Death to Israel” echoed throughout the country, as the people displayed their resolve against the crimes of Global Arrogance.”
“The other important point is that, whether this accord is ratified or not, we will not abandon our regional friends, such as the oppressed people of Palestine, the oppressed people of Yemen, the people and government of Syria, the people and government of Iraq, the oppressed people of Bahrain and the sincere mujahideen of the Resistance in Lebanon and Palestine. These people will always enjoy our support.”3
The nuclear deal and the expected easing of the sanctions are likely to boost Iran’s power and power projection in the region. The Gulf states already feel Iran’s lengthening shadow and are trying to warn Washington of the deal’s long-term implications.
Meanwhile Khamenei has posted on his homepage a defiant infographic that describes and maps the huge disparities (“180 degrees”) between Iranian and U.S. policy in the Middle East.
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Notes
1 http://www.ammarname.ir/node/127216
2 http://www.leader.ir/langs/fa/index.php?p=contentShow&id=13413
3 http://farsi.khamenei.ir/ndata/news/30410/B/13940513_0230410.jpg
