Khamenei: US exploits ethnicity, religion, gender to sow discord

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
11 Sep 2023 13:04

Khamenei affirms the hegemony of global imperialist powers manifested by the US and some European countries is slowly diminishing.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks in a meeting with a group of university students in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, April 18, 2023 (AP)

In a gathering in Tehran, Sayyed Ali Khamenei addressed an audience coming from the eastern Sistan and Baluchestan province, IRNA reported.

During his address, Khamenei affirmed that global imperialist powers, led by the United States, are experiencing a period of decline and would continue to weaken over time.

"The main lines of development include several points such as the weakening of the arrogant powers of the world. These arrogant powers [the United States of] America and certain European countries are becoming weaker and weaker," he said.

Addressing concerns about foreign interference, the Supreme Leader noted that the US government has formed a self-proclaimed "crisis group" with the intention of exploiting Iran's internal divisions to create turmoil: namely disputes based on ethnicity, religion, and gender.

"They have come to the conclusion that there are several crisis-prone points in Iran, ethnic disputes, religious differences, and the issue of gender and women, which can be exploited to create a crisis."

However, Ayatollah Khamenei expressed his firm belief that these US-driven plots would ultimately fail.

Back in August, Sayyed Ali Khamenei congratulated President Ebrahim Raisi and his administration on their "good neighborliness" policy as well as their foreign policy achievements and endeavors to join international organizations.

The leader expressed that Iran should not be in any conflict with its neighbors, detailing that all conflicts should be transformed into cooperation, something he believes has already been done to some extent.

Ayatollah Khamenei also cited Iran's participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the BRICS group of rising countries as two significant accomplishments in a short period of time.

"Membership in two important international agreements in a short period of time was a great success," he expressed, detailing that this shows Iran's growing influence as many regional and international alliances are not only willing but insisting that Iran join.