AFP, Tehran :
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Monday that the country’s economic problems were the result of internal mismanagement by the government and not just US pressure.
“Economic experts and many officials believe the cause of this issue is not foreign, it’s internal,” he said in a speech in Tehran, according to tweets released on his official account.
“Not that sanctions don’t have an impact, but the main factor is how we handle them.”
He referred specifically to the collapse in the currency, which has lost around half its value since April.
“If our performance is better, more prudent, timely and effective, sanctions will not have that much effect and can be resisted,” he added.
The speech was not immediately televised. They are usually broadcast later in the day.
There have been widespread protests and strikes in recent weeks over high prices, unemployment and the wider management of the economy.
Analysts say US hostility, including its withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposition of sanctions, helped fuel the run on Iran’s rial.
But many say it has only exacerbated long-standing problems within Iran-and pressure has mounted from within the system on President Hassan Rouhani to improve his management of the economy and tackle corruption.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused the government on Monday of economic mismanagement and said it needed to improve its performance to help the country better weather newly reimposed U.S. sanctions.
Washington reimposed strict sanctions against Iran last Tuesday and President Donald Trump has threatened to penalize firms from other countries that continue to operate in the Islamic Republic. Iran has denounced the sanctions as “U.S. unilateralism”.
“More than the sanctions, economic mismanagement (by the government) is putting pressure on ordinary Iranians … I do not call it betrayal but a huge mistake in management,” Iranian state TV quoted Khamenei as saying, in his first reaction to the reimposition of U.S. sanctions.
“With better management and planning we can resist the sanctions and overcome them,” Khamenei said.
Iran’s rial currency has lost about half of its value since April in anticipation of the renewed U.S. sanctions, driven mainly by heavy demand for dollars among ordinary Iranians trying to protect their savings.
Fearing further economic hardship, thousands of Iranians in recent weeks have protested against the slump in the rial, sharp rises in the prices of some food items and state corruption.
The protests in cities and towns across Iran have often begun with slogans against the high cost of living, high prices and a lack of jobs, but have then quickly turned into anti-government rallies.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Monday that the country’s economic problems were the result of internal mismanagement by the government and not just US pressure.
“Economic experts and many officials believe the cause of this issue is not foreign, it’s internal,” he said in a speech in Tehran, according to tweets released on his official account.
“Not that sanctions don’t have an impact, but the main factor is how we handle them.”
He referred specifically to the collapse in the currency, which has lost around half its value since April.
“If our performance is better, more prudent, timely and effective, sanctions will not have that much effect and can be resisted,” he added.
The speech was not immediately televised. They are usually broadcast later in the day.
There have been widespread protests and strikes in recent weeks over high prices, unemployment and the wider management of the economy.
Analysts say US hostility, including its withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposition of sanctions, helped fuel the run on Iran’s rial.
But many say it has only exacerbated long-standing problems within Iran-and pressure has mounted from within the system on President Hassan Rouhani to improve his management of the economy and tackle corruption.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused the government on Monday of economic mismanagement and said it needed to improve its performance to help the country better weather newly reimposed U.S. sanctions.
Washington reimposed strict sanctions against Iran last Tuesday and President Donald Trump has threatened to penalize firms from other countries that continue to operate in the Islamic Republic. Iran has denounced the sanctions as “U.S. unilateralism”.
“More than the sanctions, economic mismanagement (by the government) is putting pressure on ordinary Iranians … I do not call it betrayal but a huge mistake in management,” Iranian state TV quoted Khamenei as saying, in his first reaction to the reimposition of U.S. sanctions.
“With better management and planning we can resist the sanctions and overcome them,” Khamenei said.
Iran’s rial currency has lost about half of its value since April in anticipation of the renewed U.S. sanctions, driven mainly by heavy demand for dollars among ordinary Iranians trying to protect their savings.
Fearing further economic hardship, thousands of Iranians in recent weeks have protested against the slump in the rial, sharp rises in the prices of some food items and state corruption.
The protests in cities and towns across Iran have often begun with slogans against the high cost of living, high prices and a lack of jobs, but have then quickly turned into anti-government rallies.
