Opposition releases clip in which Revolutionary Guards commander vows: regardless of nuclear deal, hostility with US will continue.
A leading commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards has claimed his country’s ultimate aim is to turn the United States into “an Islamic Republic,” and rejected any possibility of a thawing in relations between Tehran and “The Great Satan.”
An undated video released by the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, an Iranian opposition group, shows Commander Hassan Abbasi – who is also a member of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei’s inner circle – making the comments during an address, in which he lashed out at unnamed Iranian officials for expressing hope that a nuclear deal with the US could open the door for wider ties.
Abbasi, a fierce Khamenei loyalist, insisted that any deal with America would be limited purely to Tehran’s nuclear program.
“The Supreme Leader’s position has always been negotiation just on the nuclear issue,” he said. “Some people during their speech have said that those who say we are only negotiating for nuclear energy are wrong. We are aiming to solve all the problems with the world.
“No sir! This is not in your jurisdiction to solve all the problems through negotiations! The country has a Supreme Leader, and a constitution, and the limits have been defined. War and peace in constitution is the Leader’s responsibility. The Parliament has defined the policies. You have been told from the start of the negotiations to remain within your boundaries.”
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“What do you want to solve with America? If you are referring to the Imam’s comments, Imam said America is the Great Satan,” he declared, referring to comments by the Islamic Republic’s first Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini, who led the Islamic Revolution.
“Has the Satanic nature of America been resolved?” he asked rhetorically.
“Imam said America is naturally a terrorist state. Is the US no longer a terrorist state? …Imam said America is the mother of all corruptions. Is America no longer the mother of all corruptions?”
Full article: Iranian Commander: We Won’t Rest Until US is an Islamic Republic (Arutz Sheva 7)
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