At the beginning of the meeting, the President congratulated the Iranian people on the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution and said: "The great Iranian nation, after centuries of authoritarian regimes, suffering and humiliation, and after decades that their country was in the hands of foreign powers, decided to make national sovereignty, dignity, independence, freedom and eradicating all kinds of corruption and injustice realised".
Dr Rouhani stated that this will was achieved by the victory of the great revolution, saying: "Today, after 39 years, we continue to witness the support, participation, vitality and resistance of the people against all kinds of threats and achievements in the domestic and foreign fields".
The ideals and goals of the revolution has guided us for centuries, said Rouhani adding: "The people do not give up the principles of freedom, independence, national sovereignty, the fight against tyranny and colonialism, resistance against aggressors, and fight against corruption".
Stressing that the government does not have budget shortage, he said: "This year is a very good year for the government, because, in the past years, we had had a hard time meeting our needs in the last couple of months but this year, this is not the case".
The President added: "All organs of the public sector must give up their businesses, including banks, and this is the way to save our economy. Public sector, non-governmental institutions and the armed forces must give up their businesses, because this is to the benefit of the people and themselves".
Dr Rouhani also said: "All international figures illustrate that Iran's conditions in human resources development and science are very good".
Regarding the recent protests, the president added: "People have criticism and protest about economy, and it is correct; but their protest is not merely limited to economy, but it includes social and political issues, as well as foreign relations. We must be open to these criticisms and see what people want".
Dr Rouhani continued: "Fortunately today, all the officials in the country accept the principle of protest, and I am very happy that everyone is saying that the voice of the people must be heard. This is a very happy day for all of us to hear the voices of the people and act according to their demands".
On a question about the new US administration's foreign policy approach, and Iran's response to that, the President replied:
"We are in a complicated region that is experiencing a lot of problems. We consider political solution and negotiation, especially with the countries of the region, as the only solution. But at the same time, we never hesitate to talk with countries outside the region," the President continued.
He went on to say: "In all of the important foreign meetings during the past 5 years, the situation of the region has been one of my main points in meetings with world leaders".
The president added: "We have always discussed and made our comments, and we have continuously emphasised that we are ready for consultation. We have announced that our goal has been to fight terrorism and establish stability. The goal was to make the peoples of the region decide for their own future. The goal was to prevent foreign powers from intervening in the region and selling their weapons".
Pointing out that Iran will continue to discuss, negotiate and consult with the countries of the region and other countries outside the region, and sometimes even ask for help, he said: "On the margins of the UN General Assembly and in negotiations with European and non-European officials, I have called on them to work on putting an end to the Yemeni war, and I have asked them to use all their might to stop the bombing of the innocent people of Yemen. We have always talked about the region with the countries of the world and we will talk again".
Answering a question about attracting foreign investment, he said: "Foreign finance in Iran has increased compared to the past. Many instances of investment that require complicated technology are underway through cooperation with foreign companies".
On the Islamic Republic of Iran's stances towards the recent operation of Turkish forces in northern Syria, he said: "Regarding the issues of the region, especially regarding Syria, good negotiations have been made between Iran, Syria and Turkey and just today, I talked with Mr Putin and one of the important issues that he mentioned was the need to hold a tripartite summit of the three countries about the region and Syria in the near future".
Dr Rouhani added: "Iran has good relations with Russia and Turkey, but our main stance is that the entry of an army into the territory of another country has to be with the permission of the government of that country and the consent of its people, if people and the government of that country do not allow it, we do not consider this right and want this operation to be stopped as soon as possible".
"Because both the Turkish and Kurdish brothers will be killed in the operation, this operation will not be fruitful. For this reason, this is what we recommend and believe and will have such a viewpoint towards all countries. An instance is that we completely condemn the presence of Americans in Syria, of course, they have very inappropriate goals in the region and they are thinking of disintegrating Syria. Therefore, by principle, we do not accept someone entering a country without the permission of its government, but the relations between the three countries will continue well," the President added.
He also commented on a question about Iran's possible response in case of US' decision to amend the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) by saying: "I am very glad that after a year at the White House, Mr Trump has not yet been able to achieve the goal he pursued and what he shouted during the presidential campaign that he would tear up the deal and the JCPOA is so strong that it has been able to survive against the US for one year now".
Dr Rouhani said: "What the US will do in the future, we do not know, even their European friends don't know what he wants to do. That is, no one anticipates what the US government is going to do in the future about Iran and the JCPOA".
The president emphasised: "We have principles and we continue on the basis of our principles. Firstly, as we have repeatedly emphasised, we will not be the first country to violate it, and nothing will be added or removed from it. What Mr Trump wants is his own business. But not a single line will be added or removed from the JCPOA".
Dr Rouhani continued, "We do not consider anything else related to the JCPOA; it is a seven-party commitment and seven countries have agreed on it".
"The mistake Mr Trump is making is that he thinks that the JCPOA is the commitment that the democrats have made, while it is the government's commitment, regardless of the administration," said the president.
This commitment is lasting and the United States government is committed to it today, said Rouhani adding: "If the United States breaks it, this will undermine its commitment and credibility; of course, we will have possible reactions for the future but we will adhere to it as long as it has benefits for us".
Stating that everybody believes that the current US administration is after interruption with all its might but how much it can do this is under question, the president said: "One of the instances of the US efforts in this regard is that it tried to turn the protests into an international and security issue by taking it to the UNSC, in the meeting of which all countries opposed it".
"We should not think that because the US has decided to put pressure on Iran, so we will be under pressure; this is not the case. The Americans pursue this decision and we will stand against them decisively," he continued.
The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran also went on to say: "In economy, Americans have always sought sanctions and pressure, and they continue to do so, and they may increase or decrease the pressure".
"But our relations with the European Union today, even compared to before 2005, is better than ever. Today we have very good relations; our relations with Russia may be better than ever; our relations with China are good and we have good relations with most countries in the region," added Rouhani.
He continued: "Things in the region has gone as we wanted. We wanted to undermine terrorism but the Americans did not want it, and failed in Syria and Iraq. Today, they have plans for Syria that, in my opinion, will fail too".
Answering a question about the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)'s renegotiation, he said: "As we have repeatedly emphasised before, the JCPOA is not renegotiable or rewritable; it is an agreement that was made after 30 months of efforts and approved by the United Nations Security Council so it has turned into an international agreement".
"Regarding defence capabilities of our country, we will provide and strengthen everything that we need to defend the country, such as aircraft, missiles and submarines. Of course, our commitment to the world is that we will not seek weapons of mass destruction, not only because of our commitment, but also because of the fatwa of the Supreme Leader," added Rouhani.
"Our missiles are designed for defending our country, not to be used as weapons of mass destruction," said the president, emphasising that "Iran's missiles are not made for invasive purposes and will not be used to invade any country, so we do not negotiate with anyone about it".
The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran also said: "If the Americans were to live up to all their commitments in the JCPOA good conditions would have been created and perhaps it was possible to discuss other issues with them, but unfortunately, they themselves have lost this golden opportunity".
Dr Rouhani said: "I have always stressed that the key to the future of Iran-US relations is in Washington's hands. They should stop their actions, pressures, sanctions and threats".
The president also said that the situation is quite different from that of the past, that is, the administration that is in Washington today is completely different from the governments of the past, saying: "An influential and Zionist man being inside the White House, constantly traveling to and from Israel, undoubtedly affects regional and global affairs".
Pointing out that the Israelis are feeling a new condition but are completely wrong, Dr Rouhani added: "They think that if Mr Trump and Kushner are next to them and there are some people in Saudi Arabia who do not have enough maturity for regional issues, they can use this opportunity against the countries of the region and against Iran and Quds".
By taking advantage of this opportunity, Trump announces al-Quds as the capital of the Zionist Regime. Fortunately, apart from one or two countries, all countries of the world stood up against this wrong action, and the heads of the Islamic countries, except one or two countries, took good positions on this issue".
Dr Rouhani continued: "They are seeking to take advantage of this opportunity against the Palestinian people, Quds and al-Quds, and against the countries of the region, including Iran".
Saying that we should be alert enough in this field and that regional countries should be united more than before, he said: "In my opinion, over time, those who rule in Riyadh will understand that the direction they chose is incorrect and does not lead them to what they want".
Pointing out that during the past 70 years the Zionist Regime has always been plotting, bombing and occupying Islamic countries, he said: "So, whether we want it or not, the main enemy in the region is the Zionist Regime and the path to the advancement of Muslims is unity of Islamic nations; we must put the differences aside".
Dr Rouhani emphasised: "We are so eager to see the Saudi regime has changed its path and takes the interests of the people and the Muslims into account, and if we can do anything, we will not hesitate".
Stating that an important inclusive agreement between Iran and Afghanistan has begun since the time of the previous Afghan president and is now underway, he said: "Almost all of its parts are finalised now, some of which are being negotiated; this agreement is an inclusive one and if concluded, it will surely benefit the two countries".
Referring to terrorism in Afghanistan, he said: "We are sorry, and if we can help, whether in consultation or anything else, we are prepared to do anything. Of course, the presence of Americans in Afghanistan and all of their bases in the country, is based on the pretext that they wanted to establish security in Afghanistan, but as we are seeing it today, unfortunately, people have less security, and perhaps the presence of foreign forces is a great pretext for terrorists in order to attract young people on the pretext that our country is occupied by the United States".
Dr Rouhani continued: "I hope that the Afghan government and nation will do what they consider to be their own interests, and Iran will certainly help the country in combatting terrorism whenever the Afghan government requests us."
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