TEHRAN – Iranian President Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi has said that the enemy does not want to see the Iranian nation live independently and it unsuccessfully tried to prevent the Iranian nation from making progress.

Ayatollah Raisi made the remarks during a two-day visit to Bushehr province, the industrial hub of Iran. 

Raisi addressed the huge gathering of the people of Bushehr people on Thursday afternoon during the second provincial visit of the Popular Administration to Bushehr province. He pointed out that we should be grateful to all those who sincerely sacrificed their lives for the independence, security and comfort of this nation and defended the country, saying, "The unity and cohesion of this country today is also due to these martyrdoms and sacrifices".

Stating that the enemy does not want the Iranian nation to live independently, freely, with strong will and cohesion, President Raisi stated, "The enemy has always tried to stop or at least slow down the Iranian nation's rapid movement with Imposed War, sedition of hypocrites, and cruel threats and sanctions, but it has not succeeded and will not succeed".

Ayatollah Raisi also referred to the enemy's recent combined war, which was designed and implemented by taking advantage of their past experiences, and stated, "The enemy thought that they could slow down or stop the movement of the Iranian nation with street riots, but they made a miscalculation because they thought that these people and country are like other people and other countries".

He referred to the enemy's economic and currency disturbances after the failure of the street riots and stated, "When the street riots failed with the presence and insight of the people, the enemy tries to create inflammation in the market and the field of economy, production and scientific and technical activities and slow down or stop technology in the country, but this morning in Asalouyeh, we saw the inauguration of a huge project that was implemented with an investment of more than 2 billion dollars and was entirely Iranian".

Saying that Phase 11 of the huge refinery in South Pars will be put into operation soon, Ayatollah Raisi noted, "The enemy wanted our economic growth to be negative, the country's trade and relations with neighbors and other countries to stop, and the country's trade balance to be negative, but today they see that the country's economic growth and trade balance are positive, and our trade with our neighbors has grown by 40%, and by being a member of the Shanghai Organization, we have been connected with all the infrastructures of Asia".

Pointing out that the enemies are looking for an excuse for sedition against the Iranian nation, President Raisi emphasized, "As I said in the speech on Feb 11, the Iranian nation is in the position of the claimant, and it is the western countries that are in the position of the accused and should be held accountable".

Ayatollah Raisi said, "The enemies tell lies every time and this time they have claimed that the country's foreign exchange reserves are not enough, but here I declare that thanks to the people's presence, production, and thanks to the round-the-clock work of our good young people, the country's foreign exchange reserves are sufficient and in good condition".

He added, "The people know the enemy's tricks well, and they will defeat the enemy in the currency exchange market disturbances as they failed in the street riots".

Ayatollah Raisi stated that today many countries are willing to invest in Iran and the areas of high economic growth can be seen in the country, and stated, "The movement and progress of the Iranian nation has not and will not be stopped by the conspiracies of the enemy".

"The enemy seeks to disappoint the people, and therefore, whoever creates hope among the people with their actions and pen has moved in the direction of the strategy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and whoever creates despair in any way, has acted in the direction of the enemy's strategy," he said, according to the official website of the Iranian presidency. 

Referring to the statistics that show the decrease in unemployment and the increase in employment creation statistics, the President stated, "Statistics show that with the establishment of closed and semi-closed units, we see an increase in employment and a decrease in unemployment, but this is not enough considering Iran's many capacities".