Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in a live speech on state TV for the start of the Persian New Year holiday, yesterday said that US sanctions have forced the country to become self-sufficient as he called on Iranians to preserve unity.
Tensions between Tehran and Washington have increased since 2018 when US President Donald Trump pulled the US out of Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with six nations and reimposed sanctions on the country, crippling its economy.
“Iran benefited from America’s sanctions. It made us self-sufficient in all areas,” said Khamenei, who looked healthy despite rumors that he had contracted COVID-19.
On Wednesday, officials close to Khamenei denied the rumors.
US sanctions, combined with pandemic’s economic impact, have bitten deeply into Iran’s economy, causing a price spiral and a slump in the value of the rial.
Iranian officials have blamed the sanctions for hampering Tehran’s efforts to contain the speedy spread of the virus across the country.
On March 9, Khamenei’s office announced that his annual speech in the city of Mashhad for the Persian New Year holiday had been canceled to prevent further COVID-19 cases in the Middle East’s worst-affected country.
“Last year was a tumultuous year for the Iranian nation. It was a year that began with the floods and that ended with the coronavirus ... but we will overcome all hardships with unity,” Khamenei said.
He named the new Iranian year “The year of boosting production.”
In a separate message for the Iranian New Year Nowruz, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Iranians would overcome the pandemic with unity, praising doctors and nurses for their courage in fighting the disease.
“Our nation has managed to reach its goals, despite difficulties... Iran will overcome the coronavirus with unity,” Rouhani said in his televised speech.
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