Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has declared Iran as the world’s “number one” power. “Everybody has understood that Iran is the number one power in the world,” Ahmadinejad said in a speech in Tehran on Thursday [Fars News agency, 28 February].
“Today the name of Iran means a firm punch in the teeth of the powerful and it puts them in their place,” Ahmadinejad added.
On Monday, during an address to the Assembly of Experts in Tehran, Ahmadinejad had called the Islamic revolution and the establishment of the Islamic Republic the “greatest events of the contemporary history” since the appointment of “Prophet Muhammad as messenger of Allah and the martyrdom of the Prophet's grandson Imam Hussain” [IRNA, 25 February].
In the past few days, President Ahmadinejad has insisted that the latest IAEA report on Iran nuclear program was a total victory for Iran, and the issue was no more. This in spite of reports that the UN Security Council will pass a third sanctions resolution against Iran as early as tomorrow.
I have voiced my concerns in previous posts that the leadership in Tehran seems to have lost touch with realities. Ahmadinejad’s recent pronouncements, however, unfortunately go a step further. We might be witnessing a dangerous situation of leaders becoming delusional. Iran can certainly ill afford it at a critical moment in its history.
4 comments:
Nader,
By any chance have you run across the original comments by the President (in Persian)? The president.ir site, where many or most of his speeches are posted is currently not available. I can't connect anyway. The site is archived here but the latest archive update is 20 August 2007.
I understand that the differentiation between the definite and indefinite articles ("the" and "a" in English) is not quite so precise in Farsi as it is in English but I would like to see the original Farsi version of this speech. I would be interested in knowing whether or not President Amadinejad said Everybody has understood that Iran is THE number one power in the world, or if he said Everybody has understood that Iran is A number one power in the world.
As you know, the infamous "wipe israel off the map" statement attributed to the President was an incorrect translation into English of his original speech (offline at the president.ir site at moment but copied at the alternate website linked), quite possibly on purpose. I wonder if this statement by the President was also mistranslated or misrepresented. President Amadinejad has a tendency toward bombastic comments but it's a bit difficult to believe he would represent Iran as The number one power in the world, even in front of the Iranian public.
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I'm interested in the same, Mark.
The UNSC vote just got postponed until at least Monday. A unanimous vote this time around appears to be more difficult to achieve, momentarily at least. It will be interesting to see how the voting goes for Indonesia, Libya and South Africa.
I also read that Tehran abruptly called off on Wednesday the signing of the long-awaited US$16 billion deal with China Offshore Oil Corporation for the development of its North Pars gas fields, which is estimated to have reserves of 80 trillion cubic feet. This followed Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi telephoning Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, on Wednesday soon after Secretary Rice concluded her talks in Beijing.
It's also looking doubtful that Iran will be taking delivery of any J-10 fighter planes, as was previously speculated.
Mark K and Mark P,
Fars News Agency did quote Ahmadinejad yesterday as saying: “Iran ghodrat awal jahan ast.” The news agency, in its English page, translated it as the “number one world power.”
I believe the translation is exact. Also from the context of speech it is clear what he meant. At another section he also says that Iran had “overtaken” (posht-e sar ghozashteh) the superpowers.
To read his entire speech in Farsi, you can go to Fars News Agency at following link:
http://www.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8612090075
Thanks Nader.
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