The US has been slapped down by the power of Islam: it holds a grudge against the religion of Islam. The US has been slapped down by the Islamic Revolution: it holds a grudge against the Islamic Revolution. They used to be in charge of all affairs in Iran. Everything was under their control. The officials of the country used to be obedient to them. The resources of the country were at their disposal. The resources of the country would be transferred here and there according to their wishes. The economic, social, and cultural policies of the country would be formulated the way they wanted. However, their hands were cut off from this means of controlling Iran. What cut off their hands? It was the power of Islam that did so; it was the Islamic Revolution that severed their hands from our country: that is why they are enemies.
Well, there is an important truth which is sometimes not seen by some people: its dazzling clarity makes it go unnoticed. This truth is a bright and shining one, which is the fact that in this 40-year challenge, the side which has been defeated represents the US and the side which has achieved victory represents the Islamic Republic. --This is a very important truth. What is the reason behind America’s defeat? The reason for their defeat was that it was they who began the attack. It was they who initiated corrupt actions. It was they who imposed sanctions, and it was they who launched a military attack, but they have not achieved their goals. --This is the reason why the US has been defeated.
By adopting those measures, the US pursued the goal of restoring the dominance they once had over our country during the time of the Pahlavis. They want to restore that dominance once more. That dominance and that control disappeared with the emergence of the Revolution and their hands were cut off from Iran. The goal of imposing that war, imposing sanctions, and exerting political and economic pressures was to restore that dominance. Well, they failed. And, again, it's been 40 years that they have been working hard against us, but they have not achieved a single thing.
Presently, the country wherein the US does not play a role whatsoever, in terms of decision-making and management, is the Islamic Republic of Iran. Well, this is a defeat for the US, and there is no clearer defeat than this. The purpose of imposing the war was to defeat the Islamic Republic in that confrontation with Saddam. They wanted to humiliate the Islamic Republic and say that the government and system of the Islamic Republic caused Iran's defeat; however, the opposite happened. In all the wars that Iran was involved in, during the past two centuries, Iran was defeated, but that eight-year war was the first and only war wherein Iran defeated the other side and foreigners failed to usurp even one inch of Iran’s soil. --This was the first war with such an outcome, and the result was the exact opposite of what the Americans wanted.
The purpose of imposing sanctions was to cripple the country and hold it back from advancements. They imposed sanctions so that they might cripple the economy and, consequently, the country. They wanted to hold it back, but what was the end result? The result was that the movement towards self-sufficiency in the country accelerated! Previously, we had gotten used to – the people of Iran had gotten used to – importing everything for years. Now, thanks to the sanctions they have imposed, we have gotten used to embarking on producing everything, first. --Later on, I will elaborate on this.
Today, hundreds of groups – active groups comprised of intelligent youth, whether students at universities or at schools – are busy carrying out important tasks in the country. As I said, I will refer to what they have done later. --This is because of sanctions: because they imposed sanctions on us, we thought of satisfying our own needs. So, sanctions ended in our advantage. The US was defeated by their own policy as well. Notice that these are continuous defeats for the American side.
I would like you, dear youth, to pay careful attention to this point – this is because you will be in charge of the future affairs of the country; therefore, you should pay careful attention. Even if we put aside the issue of the challenge between Iran and the US, at a broader level, when we look at the condition of the US, we see that America’s power, might, and awe is declining in the world. It has been declining over the years. America today is much weaker than that time when the Revolution achieved victory. America’s power is decreasing: this is an important point.
Many credible politicians and social scientists of the world believe that America’s soft-power is declining and disappearing. What is soft-power? Soft-power means the capability of a government to make others accept and believe its demands, opinions, and beliefs. This soft-power of the US is completely waning and declining, and this is happening in different areas. This was the case during the time of the Obama administration as well, but since that other gentleman took over, they are unambiguously opposing him. The world is opposing him in most areas of his decision making. --This is not just some opposition on part of the people – if they conduct a poll on a global scale, they will get negative opinions – but even those governments which have some considerations for the US are opposing him.
China, Europe, Russia, India, Africa, and Latin America are all protesting his decisions. America’s soft-power is declining and disappearing. --This is not my claim: this is a claim which has been put forward by well-known social scientists. America’s moral and soft power is declining. They are even disgracing liberal democracy which is the main pillar of western civilization: they are disgracing it.
Several years ago, a well-known sociologist said that the current condition of the US is the epitome of the historic perfection of humanity and that humanity will not be able to go beyond this. That same person has taken it back, and today he says that this is not the case, and he dreams of other things. He may not explicitly say that he was wrong, but he is contradicting his old beliefs: the exact opposite of what he had said in those days. --Well, this is the condition of the US.
Of course, as I have mentioned, frequently, liberal democracy has proven to be the ruin of Western nations who have based their government and social system on liberal democracy. The kind of liberal democracy which is common in the West today has ruined them. --It has led to social rifts, lack of social justice, the destruction of the family unit, comprehensive and epidemic corruption, and excessive and extreme individualism: they are all ruined.
Now, with the emergence of that man – the current eerie and strange U.S. President – he is selling all their values at a cheap price: he has, in fact, destroyed the remainder of American reputation and that of liberal democracy. --This [portion of the speech] was about the soft power of the US.
Let me tell you, America’s hard power has been severely damaged too. Hard power means military and economic power: these are the constituents of hard power. Sure, they have military weapons, but the human and military resources of the US are extremely despondent, confused, agitated, and hesitant. That is why they use criminal organizations – like Blackwater (known as Academi today) and other such organizations – to further their goals wherever they are in the world. In other words, American soldiers are not able to implement America’s plans: this is the present condition of their human resources.
The same is true of their economy. Today, America’s public debts amount to over 15 trillion dollars or more [with the total public debts outstanding at over 21 trillion!] --This is a grotesque figure! Their debts amount to 15 trillion USD! And their budget deficit is about 800 billion dollars in the current year. These are, in fact, their economic deficiencies. As usual, they try to cover them up with pompous gestures, slogans, and various statements to keep up for the sake of appearances, but these are the realities of the US. --This is the hard power of the US.
So, the United States of America is declining: everyone must realize it. Those who are willing to completely forget about the issue of Palestine, with their support of the US in the region, need to realize that the US is declining! It is regional nations who are thriving. It is the truths in the region which are thriving. The US is declining in its own region, let alone in this region.
One of the manifestations of American defeat is that it has failed to influence the spirit of seeking independence in our people and our youth. Notice, today, our dear youth have independence-seeking sentiments throughout the country. Some of them are not even committed to religious principles, but they have a feeling of resistance against the domination of foreigners. --This shows that despite all of the U.S.A.'s propaganda efforts, and despite all endeavours made in the media and news empire that they have built, they have failed to influence the young generations of Iran. They have failed to undermine and weaken the spirit of resistance and independence in them.