Highlight 1 What could have been done differently?
'Instead of negotiating with the West in 2013 and giving many concessions, Iran should have increased its nuclear capabilities and its cooperation with China and Russia.
Let me give you an example: In 2015, China's President Xi Jinping came to Tehran, but Iranian officials at the time concluded that working with China was not in our interests, so we didn't; this was a major mistake.
If we started our strategic cooperation with China at that very moment, we would be several steps ahead of where we are now.'
Highlight 2 Differences between Iran and Libya
Despite the fact that Iran doesn't produce nuclear weapons, Iran will never end up like Libya, because Libya not only gave up its nuclear program, but also capped the range of its conventional missiles.
In Iran, we have ballistic missiles with ranges of approximately 2,000 kilometers, and we are working to produce Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) with far greater ranges than that.
Highlight 3 Iran and Israel war is inevitable
'A new war between Iran and Israel is inevitable, although we can't predict when exactly it will take place. Iran is certainly more prepared now than last time, and all military and security assessments show this. Iran has prepared for various different scenarios.
Rather than closing the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has much greater tools at its disposal to pressure Israel and the United States, which I cannot elaborate.
On the last day of the war, Iran fired a new missile; this single missile penentrated 6 or 7 Israeli air defense layers and struck its target. Our capabilities are much greater than what we revealed during the 12-day war.
Highlight 4 Why Iran keeps negotiating with the West despite broken promises?
'Iran is a democratic country, the monarchy was abolished in 1979. Iranian officials are dependent on the people's votes. The chairman of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, was primarily recommended by the President (Pezeshkian) and simply approved by the Supreme Leader; this has always been the case.
The Supreme Leader doesn't impose his views on people, his approach has always been to work with the President, because he got the people's vote. Even if the President's views may be contradictory to his.
When the elected President is someone like Masoud Pezeshkian, it's natural that the government officials will also follow his view on matters (like negotiations with West).
That's why you see, when someone like Ahmadinejad was President, and his negotiator was Saeed Jalili, Iran moved towards expanding its nuclear capabilities, whereas during Rouhani's Presidency, with a negotiator like Javad Zarif, Iran moved in exactly the opposite direction, limiting its nuclear program.'
Highlight 5 On Yemen and Hezbollah
'A group of Iranian MPs recently visited Lebanon, and one of them confirmed to me that Hezbollah has been able to rebuild rapidly and successfully.
Hezbollah has overcome the initial shock and crisis following Nasrallah's assassination, and it will be an even tougher opponent for Israel from now on. Everything they required from Iran has been given to them, and they've rebuilt their capacity.
However, Hezbollah doesn't rely solely on Iranian support for their continued existence; the era of Iran needing to help them 'stand on their feet' has passed, and the same is true for Yemen and other resistance groups in the region. They follow their own path.'
Highlight 6 On Syria
'The movement that is currently in power in Syria is not a legitimate representative of the Syrian people. It came to power through a quasi-coup.
Neither did Jolani come to power through a referendum, nor through a popular revolution. He came to power by force of arms and occupation, with the support of some suspicious countries (Turkey, Israel, etc).
Jolani's regime won't last very long, they'll either fall by themselves or by some other armed movement in Syria. His era of photo-ops with Western officials won't last long.'
Highlight 7 On Palestine
Iran supports any choice that leads to the Palestinians securing their legitimate rights. Whether that is achieved by a ceasefire or not, what's most fundamental is that the occupied Palestinian lands, which have been usurped for so many years, return to their rightful owners.
At one point in time, the right choice may be a ceasefire, and at another point in time, the right choice may be war. What matters is Palestinians obtaining their legitimate rights.
I don't believe the Gaza ceasefire will last very long, because the Zionists will not rest until they've eliminated every last Palestinian on this planet and occupied all of their lands one hundred percent.'
Warning on following MES: MES has problematic views in certain other topics and I haven't found an alternative to their reporting. However, I definitely recommend this interview because it tackles plenty of topics of interest for Lemmygrad.
If you have your own highlights, please add them in the comments. Hopefully, this brings productive conversations!
rainpizza in geopolitics
Full interview with Iranian MP, Dr. Amirhossein Sabeti. (Highlights in the post body)
https://tankie.tube/w/9qHEABLJDwCxBnKHqZFpZTHighlight 1 What could have been done differently?
'Instead of negotiating with the West in 2013 and giving many concessions, Iran should have increased its nuclear capabilities and its cooperation with China and Russia.
Let me give you an example: In 2015, China's President Xi Jinping came to Tehran, but Iranian officials at the time concluded that working with China was not in our interests, so we didn't; this was a major mistake.
If we started our strategic cooperation with China at that very moment, we would be several steps ahead of where we are now.'
Highlight 2 Differences between Iran and Libya
Despite the fact that Iran doesn't produce nuclear weapons, Iran will never end up like Libya, because Libya not only gave up its nuclear program, but also capped the range of its conventional missiles.
In Iran, we have ballistic missiles with ranges of approximately 2,000 kilometers, and we are working to produce Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) with far greater ranges than that.
Highlight 3 Iran and Israel war is inevitable
'A new war between Iran and Israel is inevitable, although we can't predict when exactly it will take place. Iran is certainly more prepared now than last time, and all military and security assessments show this. Iran has prepared for various different scenarios.
Rather than closing the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has much greater tools at its disposal to pressure Israel and the United States, which I cannot elaborate.
On the last day of the war, Iran fired a new missile; this single missile penentrated 6 or 7 Israeli air defense layers and struck its target. Our capabilities are much greater than what we revealed during the 12-day war.
Highlight 4 Why Iran keeps negotiating with the West despite broken promises?
'Iran is a democratic country, the monarchy was abolished in 1979. Iranian officials are dependent on the people's votes. The chairman of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, was primarily recommended by the President (Pezeshkian) and simply approved by the Supreme Leader; this has always been the case.
The Supreme Leader doesn't impose his views on people, his approach has always been to work with the President, because he got the people's vote. Even if the President's views may be contradictory to his.
When the elected President is someone like Masoud Pezeshkian, it's natural that the government officials will also follow his view on matters (like negotiations with West).
That's why you see, when someone like Ahmadinejad was President, and his negotiator was Saeed Jalili, Iran moved towards expanding its nuclear capabilities, whereas during Rouhani's Presidency, with a negotiator like Javad Zarif, Iran moved in exactly the opposite direction, limiting its nuclear program.'
Highlight 5 On Yemen and Hezbollah
'A group of Iranian MPs recently visited Lebanon, and one of them confirmed to me that Hezbollah has been able to rebuild rapidly and successfully.
Hezbollah has overcome the initial shock and crisis following Nasrallah's assassination, and it will be an even tougher opponent for Israel from now on. Everything they required from Iran has been given to them, and they've rebuilt their capacity.
However, Hezbollah doesn't rely solely on Iranian support for their continued existence; the era of Iran needing to help them 'stand on their feet' has passed, and the same is true for Yemen and other resistance groups in the region. They follow their own path.'
Highlight 6 On Syria
'The movement that is currently in power in Syria is not a legitimate representative of the Syrian people. It came to power through a quasi-coup.
Neither did Jolani come to power through a referendum, nor through a popular revolution. He came to power by force of arms and occupation, with the support of some suspicious countries (Turkey, Israel, etc).
Jolani's regime won't last very long, they'll either fall by themselves or by some other armed movement in Syria. His era of photo-ops with Western officials won't last long.'
Highlight 7 On Palestine
Iran supports any choice that leads to the Palestinians securing their legitimate rights. Whether that is achieved by a ceasefire or not, what's most fundamental is that the occupied Palestinian lands, which have been usurped for so many years, return to their rightful owners.
At one point in time, the right choice may be a ceasefire, and at another point in time, the right choice may be war. What matters is Palestinians obtaining their legitimate rights.
I don't believe the Gaza ceasefire will last very long, because the Zionists will not rest until they've eliminated every last Palestinian on this planet and occupied all of their lands one hundred percent.'
Warning on following MES: MES has problematic views in certain other topics and I haven't found an alternative to their reporting. However, I definitely recommend this interview because it tackles plenty of topics of interest for Lemmygrad.
If you have your own highlights, please add them in the comments. Hopefully, this brings productive conversations!