Raeisi: U.S. fails to stop Iranian nation with threats and sanctions
President Ebrahim Raeisi said the United States has failed to stop the Iranian nation with threats and sanctions, which have been turned into opportunities by the Iranian people.
Raeisi made the comments at a joint appearance with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega after he was officially welcomed by Ortega on Tuesday evening during a state visit to the Latin American country.
“The U.S. sought to stop our nation through sanctions and threats, but not only did our nation not give in, but it created an opportunity out of threats and sanctions and made progress,” Raeisi said after he was officially welcomed by his Nicaraguan counterpart, Daniel Ortega, upon arrival.
He said that the Iranian nation has succeeded in turning the sanctions and threats into opportunities.
He argued that the Nicaraguan people’s resistance against excessive demands and hegemonic powers led to their victory, adding that the two nations share a common desire for independence, freedom and justice.
False claims
He rejected “false” claims by Western powers about their advocacy for democracy and human rights and urged the West, especially the U.S., to respect governments that are based on the people’s votes.
“But they do the opposite,” he said.
Raeisi compared the U.S. role in creating Daesh to the Islamic Republic’s support for the fight against terrorism, saying, “They claim to fight terrorism but they martyred [Iran’s] anti-terror hero, General Qassem Soleimani.”
The Iranian president further noted that Tehran and Managua enjoy “strategic” relations. He expressed the Islamic Republic’s readiness to improve mutual ties in various sectors, particularly science and technology.
Similarities in revolutions
Ortega, for his part, said the Iranian and Nicaraguan revolutions have deep roots in the fight against the dominance of arrogant powers, especially the United States.
He said imperial powers intrinsically seek to dominate other countries, and they exert pressure on independent countries under the pretext of human rights and democracy.
Nevertheless, he went on, the independent nations continue to firmly stand up to them.
Heading a high-ranking politico-economic delegation, Raeisi arrived in Nicaragua on the second leg of his three-nation tour of Latin America. Earlier, he visited Venezuela and will also travel to Cuba to meet the country’s officials.
In Venezuela, the two countries’ ministers and other top officials signed a total of 19 cooperation agreements and memoranda of understanding.
The agreements are aimed at expanding cooperation between Tehran and Caracas in many areas, including in the field of petrochemicals, as the two sides move to expand overall cooperation in the oil sector.