Negotiations with US not to solve any problem: Leader

Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting with a large number of the Basij forces on Saturday morning in the Imam Khomeini Hussainiyah on the occasion of Basij Week. Five million Basij members from throughout the country also participated in the meeting via videoconferencing.

“Basij should bear in mind that the main confrontation is with global arrogance. The rioters are either oblivious, ignorant, or mercenaries,” the Leader said.

Ayatollah Khamenei said that Iran's battle is not with a group of rioters who have recently wreaked havoc in the country, adding "the main confrontation is with the global hegemony".

Ayatollah Khamenei also repudiated the notion of negotiations between Iran and the United States in order to resolve the existing problems between the two countries, saying that Washington would not settle for anything less than getting constant ransom from Tehran.

“A group of people who claim to be politically knowledgeable, but whose analyses in newspapers and virtual space really saddens one, state that in order to end these riots, you should solve your problems with the US," he added.

“Negotiation will not solve our problems with the US. Only one thing would solve our problem with the US and that is paying ransom to it, but not just one ransom, they would constantly ask for ransom,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.

“We are even told to listen to the voice of the nation. Didn’t you hear the sonorous voice of the nation during the November 4 rallies [on the National Day against Global Arrogance] then? Today, the funeral processions of martyrs project the voice of the Iranian nation. Many Iranian held rallies and participated in the funerals in Karaj, Isfahan and Shiraz,” the Leader said.

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution also noted that Iran has at times engaged in talks with the US, but it has refused to remove sanctions against the Islamic Republic and has kept them in effect.

This item is being updated...

MNA/