TEHRAN – Iranian President Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi highlighted the need for guarantees from the United States for the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as well as justice for General Qassem Soleimani who was assassinated by the U.S. nearly two years ago. 

In a lengthy speech delivered at the UN General Assembly, President Raisi addressed issues ranging from the assassination of General Soleimani and Palestine to nuclear talks and world order.

Ayatollah Raisi referred to the harms and dangers of the current and declining world order, and emphasised the intensive and continuous efforts of the Iranian nation for the formation of a just order in the world, according to the official website of the Iranian presidency.

 He described the outstanding and leading role of the Islamic Republic of Iran in standing up to coercive and interventionist policies, including curbing American-made terrorism and preventing any change in the map of the countries in the region under the command of the martyred Lieutenant General Soleimani, and emphasised, "We will pursue a fair judicial investigation into the crime of the former American President through a fair court".

President Raisi underlined the need for justice for General Soleimani. He said, “Some time ago, the former president of the United States announced that ISIS was created by the United States. It doesn't matter to us that ISIS was created by which of the American governments. The problem is that a government on the other side of the planet decided to redraw the geography of our region at the cost of shedding the blood of hundreds of thousands of women and children. But the Islamic Republic stopped this project and then pushed it back.”

He added, “The commander and hero of this war against terrorism and the destroyer of ISIS was none other than General Haj Qassem Soleimani. The one who was martyred in the path of the freedom of the nations of the region and the former president of the United States claimed credit for this crime.”

He continued, “The fair follow-up of the crime that the former president of the United States has confessed to is a service to humanity.”

President Raisi pointed out that Iran will continue to seek justice for General Soleimani by putting to trial those who ordered and committed the assassination of the general. 

In the meantime, the president raised a photo of General Soleimani while standing on the podium of the UN General Assembly. 

President Raisi referred to Iran’s unique role in the annihilation of Daesh terrorists which only one of its crimes was enslaving Kurdish, Yazidi, and Christian women.

He said that in order to deal with ancient threats and modern global problems there is no other option than solidarity and cooperation in the framework of multilateralism based on justice, and based on the principles and transcendent human values emanating from the teachings of divine prophets.

"What we want is the rights of the Iranian nation and we do not tolerate a relationship based on oppression. We stand for the rights of our nation. We believe that any oppressive relationship is detrimental to global peace and security, and the most important threat to the global community is the "normalization of oppression," he underscored, according to IRNA.