Reliance on Domestic Capacities Crucial to Countering Sanctions

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the United States’ sanctions cannot be overcome by surrendering to Washington, but through strong reliance on domestic capabilities. 
“Sanctions can definitely be overpowered, but the remedy does not lie in backing down and appeasement, because retreat would cause the aggressor to advance,” he said in a speech broadcast live on state television on Friday on the festive occasion of Eid al-Adha, Leader.ir reported. 
Under Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, all sanctions on Tehran had been lifted, but the US pulled out two years ago and imposed sweeping sanctions again to force Iranian leaders to renegotiate a more comprehensive deal. 
The Leader said Iran will negotiate with all countries, except the US and the “fake” Zionist regime of Israel.      
“America’s demand is that Iran completely abandon its nuclear industry, significantly reduce its defensive power and give up its regional influence, but acceding to these demands would not make the US backtrack,” he said, adding that no wise man would advise yielding to an aggressor’s demands to make it stop.
Instead, he said, it is essential to rely on national capabilities and revive the country’s enormous potentials which calls for implementing the principles of resistance economy that is focused on domestic productivity and interaction with the outside world. 

Empty Promises

Ayatollah Khamenei also advised against pinning hope on other countries’ empty promises.
The European parties to the deal had vowed to protect Iran’s interests, but failed to make up for the US sanctions despite their half-hearted efforts. 
“They did nothing to counter US sanctions and what they proposed as INSTEX [Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges] was a plaything that was never realized,” he said. 
After the US withdrawal, Iran waited for a year for European solutions to produce a result before taking its reciprocal measures and scaling back its commitments.
“The country awaited the Europeans’ pledges while keeping the economy on hold for foreigners’ promises is very harmful,” the Leader said.   

American Objectives 

Ayatollah Khamenei said the US pursues several objectives by imposing sanctions that he described as a crime against the Iranian nation. 
“The short-term purpose of the restrictions is to exhaust and frustrate the nation,” he said. 
“The enemy wants to exasperate the people so that they take to the streets to stand up to the government.”
According to the Leader, preventing the country from developing, especially in science, is the mid-term target of sanctions while the long-term objective is to cause Iran’s complete economic collapse and insolvency.
“Washington also has a secondary purpose of cutting Iran’s ties will all resistance movements in the region,” he said, stressing that the enemy has been unsuccessful in achieving any of these objectives. 
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed out that alongside the sanctions, the enemy is running a project of distorting the reality to shatter people’s hope in improving the situation.
“The strengths are denied or disregarded while weaknesses are exaggerated … This method of propaganda says if you want sanctions to be removed, make a compromise and stop resisting,” he said. 
He stressed that if this distortion project is defeated, the sanctions project will also fail. 
Ayatollah Khamenei also appreciated the fact that Iranians have used the opportunity of sanctions to increase the country’s self-sufficiency and to practice how to wean the economy off oil.