IRGC Says Obliged to Safeguard National Interest

Commander of Islamic Revolution Guards Corps on Tuesday assured people of the IRGC's unwavering resolve to safeguard the country’s interests against adversaries seeking to "milk" Iran.

Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari said the IRGC is duty bound to protect the nation, the ruling establishment and national security against the enemies with its military capabilities, including missiles, Tasnim News Agency reported. 

The IRGC believes foreign powers only care about their own interests and are seeking to "milk Iran", he said and warned the administration that investing trust in outsiders will only result in "embarrassment and successive acts of betrayal."

The IRGC feels bound to protect the Islamic Revolution and its achievements, the general stressed, describing the efforts to cut the Iranian economy's dependence on outsiders and improving the livelihood of the people as one key instance of such protection.

  No Focus on Economy 

Jafari emphasized that the IRGC is not concentrating on economic and business activities, arguing that it focuses on fighting poverty, facilitating development plans in the deprived areas and thwarting enemy plots to exert economic pressure on Iran.

“Without the IRGC's construction plans and development assistance, the administration would have buckled under the sanctions,” the commander said, pointing to a large number of mega-projects completed by the Guard, including several phases of the South Pars gas field, the Persian Gulf Star gas condensate refinery, construction of dams and a host of other projects.

Without getting frustrated by the unfair criticism of the IRGC role in the country, the Guard and Basij (voluntary forces) are fully prepared to give the administration assistance by contributing to development plans, helping improve the livelihood of people and reducing their economic burden, he was quoted as saying.