Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the United States' attempts to reduce Iran's oil exports to zero will not lead anywhere and the Islamic Republic will export as much oil “as it needs and intends to”.
Speaking to a group of workers ahead of International Workers' Day, the Leader emphasized that the Iranian people and authorities have proven that they can remove all obstacles.
"By focusing on economic issues, the Americans seek to bring the Iranian nation to their knees, but they should know that their latest measure will fail, too," he was quoted as saying by his website.
The US placed sanctions on Iran's oil sector after withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal last year, but granted temporary waivers to eight countries, namely China, India, Turkey, Japan, South Korea, Italy, Greece and Taiwan.
The White House announced on Monday that it would not reissue waivers when they expire on May 2, aiming to bring Iran’s oil exports to a complete halt.
"Know that your hostility will not go without a response and the Iranian people are not a nation that would sit and watch when plots are hatched against them," the Leader said.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that despite the difficulties created by the sanctions, they can benefit the nation if handled correctly and logically, as they will press for more reliance on domestic capacities and innovations.
"We see the decline in reliance on oil sales as an opportunity and will use it to rely more on our domestic capabilities," he said.
The US administration has repeatedly claimed that its harsh measures are aimed at weakening the Islamic Republic, not the Iranian people.
However, the Leader pointed out that enmity with the Islamic Republic is hostility with the Iranian people, because the system is only sustained by the nation’s help and support.
Merits of Hard Work
The Leader also described hard work as key to countering the effects of American and Zionist decisions, as it can help boost domestic production and materialize resistance economy.
"Boosting production, supporting Iranian goods, hard work and resistance economy will prepare the ground for … invulnerability to foreigners' decisions," he said.
“Resistance economy” is a set of economic principles proposed by the Leader to reduce reliance on oil revenues and boost domestic production to counter sanctions.
Ayatollah Khamenei called for fostering a culture of hard work to wipe out the mentality of waiting for "windfalls".
"The authorities … need to appreciate the community of workers and pay due attention to their major issues, including job security, wages and respect for workers."
The Leader urged relevant officials to prevent the uncontrolled import of foreign goods as it would harm domestic production and Iranian workers.
"In this regard, there are strict regulations, but they need to be enacted seriously," he said.
President Hassan Rouhani told a regular Cabinet meeting that reducing Iran's oil exports to zero is not possible and the country will eventually sell its crude through various methods.
He added that Iran is willing to negotiate with the US only when Washington removes pressure and apologizes for its wrong moves, his website reported.
“Negotiation is only possible if all the pressures are lifted, they apologize for their illegal actions and there is mutual respect,” Rouhani was quoted as saying.
Rouhani, who appeared to be referring to lifting US sanctions, said the US was not ready to negotiate.
