Tabnak – As the United States has clearly declared its aim for increasing the economic pressures on Iran by imposing severe sanctions, Iran’s Supreme Leader guides the administration how to manage the situation in order to preserve the interests of the Iranian people.
According to a Press TV report, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says European signatories to the nuclear deal with Iran, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), must provide Tehran with necessary guarantees about the continued implementation of the deal.
The Leader made the remarks in a meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his cabinet in Tehran on Sunday. The meeting mostly focused on economic problems facing the country with Ayatollah Khamenei offering ways on how to overcome them.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that drawing up a “stable economic roadmap” was needed to solve the country’s economic problems, emphasizing that solution of those problems must not be made conditional on the continuation of the JCPOA.
“Of course the European sides [to the JCPOA] are obligated to provide necessary guarantees with regard to the JCPOA, but the country’s economy must not be tied to this issue,” the Leader emphasized.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei lauded the “powerful” positions taken by President Rouhani during his recent European tour on the US threats to curtail Iran's oil sales and said, “Appearing powerful in the face of foreigners, especially Americans is necessary and this step must be take on time, clearly and firmly.”
Underlining the necessity of expanding Iran's diplomatic ties with other countries, Ayatollah Khamenei said, “Apart from a few cases such as America, the country’s relations with the East and the West must be increasingly bolstered.”
The Leader pointed to the existing economic problems and cited “strengthening the private sector,” “dealing firmly with lawbreakers,” “the administration’s supervision over financial transactions to prevent smuggling and money laundering,” and “taking the policies of the Resistance Economy seriously” as the main solutions to the economic problems that are currently nagging the country.
Ayatollah Khamenei said projecting a powerful image of the administration was another condition for overcoming the existing problems, adding that the administration’s image in the eyes of people must be that of a powerful, efficient and hard-working administration.
Earlier this month, Ayatollah Khamenei sent a letter to the president, expressing deep concern over media reports about the administration’s move to sell large amounts of gold coins and foreign currencies to certain individuals and urging Rouhani to enlighten the public opinion about the ambiguities.
Recently, the Iranian rial has plunged to a record low against the US dollar on the unofficial market. The collapse of the national currency has provoked a public outcry over the quick rise of prices of imported consumer goods.
