Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a Thursday meeting with a large group of Iranian students ahead of the November 4 ceremonies marking National Day of Fight against Global Arrogance.
“As you witnessed recently, the head of US administration said the Iranian nation is a ‘terrorist nation.’ You see how foolish this attitude is? He calls a nation terrorist. He does not say the leader is terrorist; he does not say the government is terrorist; he says the Iranian nation is terrorist,” the Leader said.
“Is it not hostility?” Ayatollah Khamenei asked.
“This foolish comment indicates that not only are the Americans the enemies of the Iranian leadership and government, they also show hostility and enmity towards the very existence of a nation that stands against them tirelessly,” he added.
Ayatollah Khamenei underlined the need for identifying the enemy as the main condition for achieving national objectives and noted, “The US is, in the real sense of the word, the main evil enemy. This reality stems from true understanding of issues and the facts on the ground, not from prejudice and pessimism.”
Americans, the Leader added, “are not capable of understanding the fact that a nation with such a rich history and culture cannot be eradicated.”
Ayatollah Khamenei argued that the Americans’ repeated mistakes and miscalculations stem from their deep animosity towards the Iranian nation
Touching on Washington’s threats to withdraw from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with the world powers, the Leader said, “Now they are taking extremely mischievous actions to sabotage the results of the nuclear negotiations, namely the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action).”
Ayatollah Khamenei warned that making concessions with the US makes it even more aggressive, noting, “Resistance is the only way.”