IRAN'S Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) on Tuesday said the U.S. is plundering the country and trying to turn Iran back into a colony when releasing an open letter to the American public at a live press conference in the Iranian capital Tehran.
Speaking at the press conference, IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohebbi listed some of the U.S. hostile actions against Iran within the past months, including imposing the 40-day war as well as the naval and aerial blockades, intensifying the economic pressure, inciting "street riots" in January and arming the anti-Iran groups stationed along the country's northwestern and southeastern borders, noting that those scenarios were all doomed to failure.
He accused U.S. President Donald Trump of concealing the truth from Americans about Iran's nuclear program and the effectiveness of Iran's blockage of energy supplies from the Gulf. He also said Iran is upgrading and mass-producing existing arms in constant efforts to expand its defense capabilities, and will introduce new weapons to the battlefield if the conflict against Iran takes on a new form.
When Iranians chant "Death to America," they are referring to U.S. policies, not the American people, said the spokesman.
Mohebbi stressed that Iran had made significant commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), but said Donald Trump abandoned the deal. He also said that despite the former Supreme Leader's ban on nuclear weapons, the U.S. still assassinated him. According to Mohebbi, the dispute with America is not about nuclear weapons, but what he described as the disintegration and plunder of Iran.
The JCPOA nuclear agreement, known as the Iran nuclear deal, was a landmark agreement struck in 2015 between Iran and the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany and the EU.
"As a member of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, Iran is committed to not producing nuclear weapons. But why does the US constantly highlight this issue? It is because its objective is to destroy Iran and steal Iran's national and underground wealth. It is clear that the US is lying and simply making excuses," said Mohebbi.
He added that the letter is intended to go beyond media publication. Rather than a short-term gesture, he described it as a deeper effort to help Americans understand Iran's perspective. He also urged Americans to read the letter, which he said presents what Iran considers the truth.
On Feb 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities. Iran responded with waves of missile and drone attacks targeting Israel and U.S. bases and assets in the region, and tightened its grip on the Strait of Hormuz.
On June 18, the United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on ending the war in the region on all fronts, including Lebanon. Under the MoU, they were scheduled to hold negotiations within 60 days, which ended on Aug. 17, to reach a final agreement, but the fate of the talks remains unclear following a series of recent escalations between the two countries.
