Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) of Iran Ali Larijani affirmed on Monday that his country has not sent a letter to the US administration asking Washington to lift sanctions imposed on Tehran.
“There has been no message to the United States but the Iranians do want these sanctions to be lifted. Is there someone out there who thinks that we want the sanctions to stay in place?” Larijani told journalists on the sidelines of a conference titled ‘We and the West: In Views and Thoughts of Khamenei.’
He asked, “Wasn’t Iran already engaged in talks? Why did the US president betray Iran during negotiations and attacked the country? Now Trump shamelessly admits he played a key role in the strike.”
Larijani said the United States seeks to break the resistance of the Iranian people, but Iran will stand strong in the face of Western brutality and American threats will not affect the national will of the Iranians.
“The basis of Iran’s policy has never been to sever trade ties with the West, but to safeguard national interests,” he said, noting that his country’s leaders “have never had hostility toward the West.”
According to Larijani, the problem lies in the West’s “hegemonic behavior and interference in Iran’s internal affairs,” which have repeatedly caused crises.
The Iranian official then described the United States as the main force behind global instability.
He said Trump’s logan “peace through strength, represents the main threat to the independence of nations as the US President seeks to disrupt international norms and replace law with power.”
Larijani also criticized historical Western actions, saying that the outcome of Western rationalism has been global wars.
He clarified that the Iranian leadership does not oppose economic cooperation with the West, but rejects Western interference in missile programs or nuclear capabilities.
“Now they argue about missiles and their range, Iran’s regional role, but why should that concern them? This approach shows that America and the West are seeking hegemony,” he said.
