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Imam Khamenei dubbed the U.S. and international sanctions imposed on Iran as criminal acts and emphasized, “Sanctions have been imposed on us since the beginning of the Revolution, and the sanctions have intensified over the last few years. They themselves boast that they have imposed the most severe sanctions against the Islamic Republic. Imposing sanctions is literally a crime. That is, it is a major threat, which is condemned by public opinion around the world because it is not about just the U.S. imposing sanctions on Iran. Rather, it is about the U.S. coercing others to enforce sanctions against Iran too.

These sanctions can function as an opportunity, in the same way, that they have already provided us with many opportunities. They can also bring about a great opportunity for us in the future. If we, the officials, act astutely, it can save the nation's economy from relying on oil. The economy’s dependence on oil should be stopped.”

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution stated that reliance on oil is a major hindrance to Iran’s economy and concluded, “The major factor causing our economic problems is dependence on oil, which has led to not paying much attention to the domestic potential inside the country for generating revenue. As a result, we have been mistakenly assuming that the country’s expenses will be met by exporting oil.”

In the end, the Supreme Leader added, “I saw in reports that they (in the West) recommend preventing Iran from achieving a non-oil economy. Among themselves, it is said that they should not let Iran experience a non-oil economy. (They recommend that they should) develop a secret means - if they don’t want to remove the sanctions - to find a way to prevent Iran from becoming completely independent (of oil exports); because, if Iran becomes independent, it will develop a non-oil economy.”