Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has called on the nation to remain calm in the face of US renewed sanctions, saying the concerns are misplaced as the country’s revenues have not experienced any drops as compared to last year.
President Rouhani made the remarks on Thursday at the inauguration of the second phase of the Persian Gulf Star Refinery in the southern province of Hormozgan. The second phase of the refinery is expected to add 12 million liters of Euro 5 gasoline to Iran’s capacity of the product. The refinery has a processing capacity of roughly 360,000 barrels of gas condensate a day upon becoming fully operational in 2018.
The president stressed that there is no need to panic just because the enemy has begun imposing sanctions against Iran. He maintained that the public’s concerns were misplaced as the government’s development budget has been paid nearly 30 times higher than the amount in the previous years.
He also added that the production of Euro 4 and Euro 5 gasoline in Iran has hit a 13-time increase compared to five years ago; “in the past, we had to import gasoline, but today we are an exporter of this product,” he said.
Rouhani stressed that one year of resistance against the US plots and demands would finally make the enemy give up in despair and disappointment.
The president admitted that sanctions would cause some difficulties for people, but they could, at the same time, be used as a great opportunity for innovations, creativity and production in the face of bullying world powers.
“A handful of bullies with miscalculations and misconceptions about the whole world, including Iran, have come to power [in the US], and are not committed to any agreements and treaties,” said Rouhani. “There is now a huge gap between the US and its allies. [Trump] does not even keep his words to Europe, China and Canada.”
Rouhani further noted that half of US population is embarrassed at their government, referring to Trump’s scandalous immigration policies and his decision to build a border wall.
“A US authority once said that they should bring the Iranian nation to its knees. In such a critical point in time, we need to feel empowered and stand against all hostility with patience and tolerance,” Rouhani advised.
Source: Mehr News Agency
