Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Mojtaba Khamenei has declared that the Iranian nation regards all scientific and technological capacities — from nano and bio to nuclear and missile technologies — as national assets that will be safeguarded like the country’s land, sea and air borders.
In a message issued on Thursday on the occasion of National Persian Gulf Day, the leader said the Iranian nation has made the greatest sacrifices for its independence and in confronting foreign aggressors, from expelling the Portuguese to resisting British imperialism.
The ayatollah said that after two months since what he called the “largest military aggression by global bullies in the region and the humiliating defeat of the United States in its plans”, a new chapter for the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz is unfolding.
He added that in the past sixty days, the region has witnessed “remarkable displays of strength, vigilance, and bravery” by Iran’s naval forces alongside the courage of the country’s youth in rejecting foreign domination.
Khamenei said it has become evident that the presence of American forces in Persian Gulf territories is the primary source of insecurity. “The fragile US bases lack even the ability to ensure their own security, let alone that of their allies,” he said.
“By God’s will, the bright future of the Persian Gulf region will be one without the United States — dedicated to the progress, comfort, and prosperity of its nations,” the leader declared, adding that outsiders who come from thousands of kilometres away with greedy intentions “have no place here except in the depths of its waters.”
The Islamic Republic will ensure the security of the Persian Gulf and eliminate the misuse of this waterway by hostile enemies, Khamenei said. “New legal frameworks and management of the Strait of Hormuz will bring comfort and progress to all nations of the region,” he added.
The leader described the Persian Gulf as a blessing beyond a body of water that has shaped part of Iran’s identity and civilisation, creating a vital route for the global economy through the Strait of Hormuz. He said repeated invasions by European and American outsiders represent only part of the “malicious schemes of global arrogance” against the region’s inhabitants.
The message marked National Persian Gulf Day, commemorating the expulsion of Portuguese forces from the Strait of Hormuz in the 17th century.
