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Sunday, October 16, 2016
MEMRI: Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei, Ideological Circles Attack Rafsanjani For Calling For Investing In Economy Instead Of Military – Like Germany And Japan Post-WWII

MEMRI October 11, 2016 Special Dispatch No.6641

Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei, Ideological Circles Attack Rafsanjani For
Calling For Investing In Economy Instead Of Military – Like Germany And
Japan Post-WWII
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/9497.htm

Iran's ideological camp has launched a new wave of accusations against
Expediency Council Chairman Hashemi Rafsanjani, who heads the country's
pragmatic camp, following his August 20, 2016 statements at an education
conference praising Japan's and Germany's strong economies. He said that
these two countries had succeeded in reviving their economies by investing
in scientific innovation instead of in their militaries, and expressed hope
that Iranian President Hassan Rohani would do the same in a second
presidential term.

In response, mouthpieces of the ideological camp accused Rafsanjani of
attempting to weaken Iran militarily, arguing that his statements invite
Iran's enemies to attack it and adding that this path will ensure that Iran
loses its independence and returns to being subordinate to the U.S.

On September 5, 2016, Rafsanjani's office issued a furious rebuttal, arguing
that his statements had been twisted and taken out of context as part of an
"organized plot" by "a certain stream," in order, inter alia, to harm
Rohani's chances of reelection. It added that the ban on a military buildup
in Germany and Japan was an historical fact, and not a personal statement by
Rafsanjani, and that had presented the two countries as examples of nations
that had successfully relied on their knowledge and used their military
budgets to establish strong industries that can confront foreign
countries.[1]

The following are September 18 statements by Khamenei criticizing Rafsanjani
following the latter's rebuttal, and a September 4 editorial in Kayhan prior
to Rafsanjani's rebuttal.

Khamenei Attacks Rafsanjani

Despite Rafsanjani's vehement rebuttal, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei
criticized Rafsanjani for his comments. In a September 18, 2016 speech to
officers of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Khamenei, while
not mentioning Rafsanjani by name, referred to him as an unwise man whose
statements are wrong. He further said that he was distorting the principles
of the Revolution and seeking to eradicate its achievements, that he wants
to make Iran again subordinate to a Western world order, and wants to adopt
Western ways of life on the pretext of the need to end Iran's political
isolation and bring it into the international community. Khamenei said:

"Recently, some have opined that dismantling military organizations has been
the reason for progress in some countries. It is very difficult to believe
that those to whom these statements have been attributed have actually said
such things. But if such statements have really been made, they are
definitely wrong.

"The countries which have been said to have closed down their military
organizations did not do so voluntarily. The reason why their military
organizations have been closed is that they were destroyed in world wars and
they were not allowed to have military organizations... No wise person puts
his defensive force aside. So, we should strengthen the defensive power of
the country on a daily basis...

"As well as the wrong statements that are made about the defensive power of
the country, there are also some wrong notions and distortions about some
revolutionary concepts. Such notions and distortions are even more dangerous
than those wrong statements.'

"Rejecting the term 'independence' and comparing it to isolation [a term
used by Rafsanjani and Rohani to argue that their policy would end Iran's
political isolation] is considered a counterfeiting [of revolutionary
values].

"The purpose of rejecting independence is following the systems that
domineering powers have designed. Unfortunately, some people are repeating
this notion whether knowingly or unknowingly. 'Independence, culture, and
beliefs' should be the ingredients [comprising] the nation's identity. 'Why
should we abandon our true identity and follow wrong and ridiculous [in
Persian the word is 'disgraceful' – MEMRI] Western methods?'[2]

Kayhan Attacks Rafsanjani

One example of the ideological camp's fierce attack on Rafsanjani was
Kayhan's September 4, 2016 editorial, penned by the daily's editor-in-chief
Hossein Shariatmadari, who is close to Khamenei. Shariatmadari wrote that
Rafsanjani had called banning Iran from having an army, and gave a series of
arguments in support of Iran's need for one both within Iran and outside it,
and stressed the need for continuing to develop its missile program. He also
said that Rafsanjani knew that his plan was sure to make Iran "a slave of
America" once more, and that he was secretly motivated to make statements
aimed at harming Iran's independence, honor, and security:

"In [his] new statement, Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani said things that you would
not expect from the Rafsanjani of the early Revolution [when he was an
anti-West revolutionary], but that are unsurprising [coming] from the
Rafsanjani of post-2009 [that is, after the public protests following the
fraudulent presidential election when he was critical of the regime and
called for reconciliation with the West]. Rafsanjani said: 'If today you say
that Germany and Japan have the strongest economies [in the world], it is
because after World War II, they were forced to not have an army... A
country at war spends a lot of money on its military, and therefore [Japan
and Germany's] money was freed up and they used it to develop science and
manufacturing, thus building an economy rooted in science – and therefore
they are no longer vulnerable. This path was opened to Iran [with its
acceptance of the JCPOA], and the administrators – those who are concerned
[about Iran] and the teachers – should enter into this atmosphere. I am
certain that Rohani's second term [after the 2017 election] will bring us to
there.

"'Rafsanjani said something similar previously, and a few months ago he
tweeted: 'The world of tomorrow is a world of talks, not of missiles.'

"Whether he knew it, and desired it, or did not know it and did not desire
it, Rafsanjani, with his statements, was inviting America and Iran's other
official enemies to come and attack it. Regarding his statements, we have to
say:

"First, in contrast to Rafsanjani's statement, Japan and Germany spend $41
billion and $36.7 billion annually, respectively, on their armies, and are
ranked eighth and ninth, respectively, on the list of countries with the
highest military expenditure. Also on this list are, in first to seventh
place, America, China, Saudi Arabia, Russia, England, India, and France.
Therefore, Rafsanjani's statistics about Japan and Germany are unreal and
unfounded. These two countries spend more on their armies than most European
countries like Italy, Austria, and others do.

"Germany and Japan were forced unwillingly to not maintain independent
standing armies. This means that after World War II... they were prohibited
from having soldiers and an independent army, and the Allies were in charge
of their foreign security. Japan and Germany were completely controlled by
the Western bloc, particularly America, whose control [over them] continues
to this day. Therefore, it is natural that countries that are under total
American control, and obey it, would face no threat from it and its allies.

"Is Rafsanjani prescribing that Iran accept the control and protection of
America and its allies? He knows full well that his prescription means
reverting to the suffocation, poverty, backwardness, and misery of the era
of tyranny [under the Shah] and becoming America's slave.

"Also in the matter of Germany's and Japan's scientific progress, Rafsanjani
presented unrealistic and mistaken statistics. The progress of these two
countries stems absolutely from ceaseless work and efforts, accurate
planning and management, and fighting corruption. Otherwise, why is there no
such progress in other nations under America's control?

"In Germany, if a cabinet minister is conducting a domestic visit – not a
foreign visit – and has his wife accompany him at government expense, he
will be fired. But here [in Iran], those who think like Rafsanjani consider
those who embezzle state funds assets to Iran [a reference to recent
corruption scandals in the country, particularly revelations of massive
salaries for bank administrators approved by the Rohani government].

"In Norway, the party that bribed Iranians as part of the Statoil deal was
tried and punished, but the Iranian side, which received millions of dollars
in bribes, and did 10 times more damage to Iran, is depicted as Robin Hood.
Germany and Japan rely on the 'can-do' principle, but one member of Rohani's
cabinet thinks that [the height of] Iran's manufacturing capability is
producing soup, while another thinks we need to bring in executives from
abroad, and so on.

"A few months after the Islamic Revolution [in 1979], some political streams
took off their masks and openly sided with the enemy. They called for
dismantling [Iran's] army, becoming so insistent that some members of the
interim government suggested returning F-14 jets previously purchased from
America, and so on. This insistence was strongly resisted by the Imam
Khomeini and his comrades. Some time later, the Iraqi army attacked Iran,
with explicit American support, exposing what had been behind these
insistent calls.

"Or, before America's failed surprise in Tabas [i.e. the failed April 1980
hostage rescue attempt], the anti-aircraft systems deployed around
Manzariyeh base in Qom were collected, on the pretext that they were
expensive and unnecessary. But days later, it became apparent that following
the attack on the U.S. Embassy, the Americans wanted to free the hostages,
first taking them to Manzariyeh base, and then extracting them from Iran.

"America and its allies constantly threaten to carry out a military attack
[on Iran], and, as they themselves have acknowledged, it is they who created
ISIS to fight Iran. Furthermore, they express great fear regarding the
mighty presence of Iran and its military advisors in the region. We need to
ask why Rafsanjani insists on constantly saying that we must end Iran's
missile program and ban Iran from maintaining an army. Had Hashemi
[Rafsanjani] said this only once, this would have necessitated an
explanation from him as to why he is deliberately inviting the enemy to
attack Iran militarily – but we could have assumed it was a mistake and
looked the other way. But when the mistake recurs, then it is a 'guiding
line,' and because it involves life, money, and the public's honor, as well
as Iran's independence and [very] existence, Rafsanjani must explain to the
nation what is behind his insistence. This explanation is vital because
Rafsanjani's statements are not in line with logic, thought, and the
religion, and are even contrary to them.

"We must ask Rafsanjani whether he believes that the hostility America and
its allies show Iran is over. The answer will probably be negative, because
not only has this hostility not decreased since the early years of the
Revolution, but it has grown even stronger and intensified, to the point
where in addition to America, its other Western allies and [even] small and
large regimes in the region that obey America have openly entered the arena
against Iran. Even the incompetent Al-Saud [regime in Saudi Arabia] has
wagged its braggart tongue. America does not hide the fact that it created
takfiri terrorist elements in order to destabilize Iranian security, and
there are dozens more examples that make this list longer. Is Rafsanjani
unaware of this obvious reality?! He certainly is aware of it. So we must
ask him why he wants to disarm Iran.

"Just imagine if Iran did not have today's effective armed forces, and that,
as Rafsanjani wishes, it had backed down from its ballistic missiles. Don't
you think that in that situation, not only America, but other small
incapable countries in the region whose hearts are hurting as a result of
[Iran's] Islamic Revolution, would hesitate to attack Iran? Or what about
ISIS, which has long dreamt of entering Iran and carrying out crimes there
as it did in Iraq and Syria? Will it waste a single moment before carrying
out its horrid crimes? If the answer to these questions is no, and if Iran
is disarmed, it will become easy prey for its enemies, great and small. Can
we doubt that Rafsanjani's statements are like an invitation to ISIS?

"In God's words, 'The infidels love [a situation in which] you abandon your
arms so that suddenly you are attacked.' Rafsanjani is considered a cleric,
so he would definitely know God's warning. Or, Surat Anfal 60, which says:
'And prepare against them whatever you are able of power and of steeds of
war by which you may terrify the enemy of Allah and your enemy.'

"This verse, which adorns the IRGC symbol, stresses the empowerment of
military might, when terrifying the enemy is mentioned as one of the goals
of building military capability. We must ask: Doesn't Rafsanjani know this
divine order?! Of course he does.

"And so, in his recent statement, Rafsanjani said that 'this path is open to
Iran.' This causes amazement, because he said this after his talk of banning
the military. Rafsanjani stressed also: 'I am sure that the second term of
the Rohani government will get us there.'

"Referring to some of the recent steps by the [Rohani] government, such as
agreeing with the FATF [Financial Action Task Force],[3] which will surely
weaken the regime, we cannot and must not turn a blind eye to such
statements and to the possible origin of such talk."[4]



Endnotes:



[1] Isna.ir, September 15, 2016.


[2] English.khamenei.ir, September 18, 2016.


[3] See also MEMRI Inquiry and Analysis No. 1269, Khamenei Glorifies IRGC
But Does Not Rule Out Adopting Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Standards,
Which Harms IRGC, Regarded In The West As A Terror Organization, September
26, 2016.


[4] Kayhan (Iran), September 4, 2016.

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