Speaking at cabinet session on Wednesday, Dr Hassan Rouhani said, “The Islamic Revolution is successful when ethics prevail in our country, and this is the great Prophet of Islam’s (PBUH) path”.
“Speaking irrational and baseless words has nothing to do with the Islamic Revolution,” said the President, adding, “Some may not be fully aware that courage, bravery, patience and endurance in peace are superior to patience in war”.
He continued, “The expediency of the nation and the Islamic community may not be understandable to the hardliners, as in the course of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah the hardliners confronted and taunted the Prophet, saying that, ‘you signed a peace treaty in which you have even neglected your mission’”.
The President emphasised, “Courage in peace is harder than courage on the battlefield, and Imam Hassan (AS) had such courage to the point that some of his closest companions criticised him harshly, but Imam Hassan (AS) continued his path”.
Emphasising that Islam's aim is neither war nor peace but the interests of Islam and the society, Dr Rouhani said, "These interests are sometimes defined in peace and sometimes in war."
The president went on to describe Imam Reza (AS) as the imam of politics, debate, dialogue and tolerance, stating, "It is not easy for a person to accept a government because of the people’s interests despite the fact that he does not consider it legitimate; this requires great patience”.
In another part of his speech, Dr Rouhani referred to the Arba’een procession, saying, "In this great event, people displayed an epic move”.
The president added, "More than 3 million people attended the ceremony in peace, security and with brotherhood and fraternity, and the Iraqis' home was open to all Iranians”.
Dr Rouhani added, "The Arba’een procession is a family and collective movement, so it is very important for the families’ consolidation, cordiality and unity of the two peoples of Iran and Iraq”.
Addressing the Iranian people, the President said, "Last year was a very difficult year, but fortunately since the beginning of this year, God has bestowed peace to the people that can be considered as the reward of patience, resistance and noble behaviour of the Iranian people towards a great cruelty”.
Dr Rouhani reiterated, "The people of Iran know very well who oppresses them and who has undermined the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and they know what effects and interests it could have”.
The president added, “On the visit to New York, three of the world's major leaders were surprised by Iran’s ability to attract all major companies in the world after the JCPOA”.
Dr Rouhani reiterated, "JCPOA showed how effective the Iranian nation's actions and Iranian diplomacy and peace and goodwill can be. This was the reason why the Zionist Regime, Saudi Arabia and American hardliners could not stand it”.
The President noted, “Enemies thought they could destroy the Iranian political system through undermining the JCPOA, but the Iranian nation is more vigilant than to be deceived by its enemies”.
Dr Rouhani said, "Of course there were some people inside who were provoking people, saying that Trump and even Netanyahu are not very bad people and it is the government that is ineffective”.
The President noted, “The government is the same government that created 12.5 per cent growth in 2016, kept inflation at single digits for three consecutive years, surpassed exports over non-oil imports, and led the country to self-sufficiency in diesel, wheat, and even oilseeds”.
Dr Rouhani added, "This government is the same government that built not only the IR-8 centrifuge, but also the IR-9 centrifuge, and not only not destroyed the Arak reactor but modernised it and continued its development path step by step. The best air defines system and the best frigate and submarines were built in this government”.
The president said, "Today, we are also witnessing the most freedom in universities, especially when we’re nearing Student’s Day, and the knowledge-based companies have been able to make great developments in the country under this government".
“In this year, we have inaugurated, and are going to inaugurate, one trillion tomans worth of projects for water and electricity every month,” said Rouhani.
The president noted, "The government is using all its skills and tact and is seeking to achieve what is in the negotiation that is in the best interests of the Iranian people".
Dr Rouhani added, "They are still sending messages for negotiations and will deliver messages, and of course the government will continue its way with dignity".
Dr Rouhani called for empathy and support in the press, the judiciary, the media, IRIB and all the officials in the country, saying, "If we work together on this path, we will not succeed, but America will fail”.
Referring to the importance of creating employment in the country, the president said, "Good work has begun and we will continue this path strongly because we believe unemployment is the basis of all the corruption".
Dr Rouhani added, "Today all the essential goods are available in the market, and this is a very important issue and all the supervisory agencies need to be closely monitoring the situation so that we can see better prices”.
The president noted that good work has been done in the field of knowledge-based companies, saying, "These companies are attracting university graduates, and this can be empowering for young people”.
Emphasising that the fight against corruption is seriously pursued by the government, Dr Rouhani said, “The three bills of transparency, anti-corruption and conflict of interest have been drafted and approved and we believe that until there is no transparency in the country, the rest is just showing off and it does not benefit the nation”
“Of course, if this is for elections, that's fine, but if you really want to eliminate corruption, you need to promote transparency, healthy competition and non-oil exports,” said the President.
The president described the key to a healthy economy as having competition, saying, “If we can't compete with the world in regional and global markets, we can't get anywhere in the economy”.
Dr Rouhani reiterated, "The way is to be present and compete in the financial and economic markets of the world and in this regard it is our duty to prepare the ground for international presence and economic competition, because if the doors are locked, nothing can be done”.
The President reiterated, "We must act in international conferences and conventions in the direction of realising the interests of the country and making financial and banking transactions smooth; in doing so, slogan does not work".
Dr Rouhani said, "It is an honour for us that we are fighting terrorism and corruption, so we should not let money our banking system be charged with laundering because this will hurt the country”.
“Of course, some are sceptical about the FATF, to whom we will not say anything; but why do some people obstruct the four bills passed by the government and the parliament; these are not in the interests of the country,” he continued.
Dr Rouhani said, "It is important to keep in mind that there should be a demand for our universities’ science and innovation, and that demand can only be from large corporations, especially private companies. Of course, we must fight corruption, not close companies”.
The president added, "Such actions, for whatever reason, including trying to use it as a slogan in the election will end up to be to your detriment."
end item\*