Managua, June 14 (RHC)-- The president of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, met Wednesday with the deputies of the National Assembly of Nicaragua, during the second day of his official visit to that Central American country.  

During his speech before the National Assembly, the Iranian president said that U.S. imperialism has always been against popular governments in Latin America.  The main characteristic of world imperialism, he noted, is that with its illegitimate demands it seeks to exploit the peoples and oppose its will.

In his remarks, he said that the resistance of the peoples contributes to the current change in the world order and the decline of the United States.

He pointed out that the imperialists are afraid of justice, conscience and the peoples, since these pillars are contrary to their interests.  He affirmed that the conscience of the peoples, the governments and the legislative assemblies of the sovereign countries are necessary to guide the struggle for freedom and justice.

He emphasized that the media empire seeks to change the image of the independent countries and sow doubts in their citizens, especially in the youth, to align their desires with the interests of imperialism.  He affirmed that constant communication and links between independent countries are vital for them to be better protected against imperialist conspiracies and plans.

He said that Iran and Nicaragua share a common history of resistance, revolution and struggle against a common enemy, as well as defense and respect for the will and vote of the people. He affirmed that if the Legislative Assemblies are based on the popular vote, then they will be an expression of their will and true democracy.

The Iranian president recalled that the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Imam Komeini, stressed that the main criterion of legitimacy of a government is the vote of the people and that all the powers of the people are concentrated in the Assembly.

He further quoted the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khamenei, who has stressed that every Palestinian citizen has the right to vote and that a government and a democracy must be established in Palestine by the vote of the Palestinians in the occupied territories, which the imperialists have prevented for 70 years.

He considered that imperialism used to send its armies or use its internal agents to impose its will, but now it also appeals to economic sanctions to achieve its purposes.  Regarding them, he stressed that they will not be the last mechanism of imperialism to impose its will, but the Iranian people have demonstrated their ineffectiveness by turning them into an opportunity to strengthen themselves.

On Tuesday night, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo welcomed Raisi, First Lady Dr. Jamileh-Sadat Alamolhoda and the accompanying government entourage at the Plaza de los No Alineados in Managua.  He expressed that the two countries have Twin Revolutions, which both triumphed in 1979, and are twinned in a permanent struggle in defense of the welfare of their peoples and against empires and their unilateral restrictive measures.

He stressed that Yankee imperialism and the Europeans want to give lessons on Human Rights and democracy, but "they are great assailants and exploiters of the peoples in different regions of the Earth."

After reviewing moments of national history that symbolize the anti-imperialist struggle, Ortega paid homage to Iranian General Qasem Soleimani (1957-2020), "who was assassinated by Yankee imperialism when he was fighting against terrorism".  He denounced that the White House encouraged terrorism and quietly accepted that it had committed the crime.

President Raisi stated that Iran has an excellent fraternal relationship with Nicaragua. He valued that these are not traditional relations, but strategic ones.  We want to increase our ties in political, economic, cultural and other areas, especially in science and technology, he said.

He expressed that both revolutions have in common the struggle for freedom and justice. You fought against the plunder and illegitimate desires of imperialism and triumphed. 

The Iranian leader stressed that Iran is a democratic country and that during the 44 years of the Islamic Republic, the popular vote has always decided the integration of government institutions.  He said that the U.S. and the West claim that they respect democracy, but they do not respect governments elected by popular vote.  He emphasized that they lie about their real pretensions regarding democracy and Human Rights.

He pointed out that they wanted to paralyze Iran with their sanctions, but they did not succeed; on the contrary, we turned them into opportunities to develop our capabilities, he said.  He assured that Iran is an advanced nation and has made great progress despite enemy sanctions.   This shows that if a people have the will, those powers will not be able to stop them, he said.

Finally, the visiting president of Iran affirmed that through sanctions the enemies want to disappoint the revolutionary peoples, but the new world order that is taking shape is in defense of the peoples and contrary to imperialism.