Shafaq News/ Ali Akbar Velayati, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's top adviser on international affairs, reflects on the latest developments in the regional and international arena.
In an interview with Al-Mayadeen Net, Velayati considered the problem with the Europeans and the West is that they "believe that the world is unipolar and that the United States is a significant power," stressing that "the only solution to the ongoing problems in the international arena is for NATO to withdraw toward the West and for the world to discuss the outstanding issues at the United Nations."
"The Americans want to be somewhere that enables them to plunder the resources of other countries, such as the oil they are looting from Syria," Velayati said in the interview. "The Americans cannot stand up to Iran and must leave this region."
Concerning Iranian-Saudi relations, the top official pointed out that Iran and Saudi Arabia must reopen their embassies.
"We are neighbors of Saudi Arabia, and we must coexist. Therefore, the embassies of the two countries should reopen to solve our problems in a better way."
On the "Axis of Resistance," Velayati confirmed to Al-Mayadeen that Tehran is "at the heart of the resistance front, and it works with Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Iraq. It helped the Iraqis against ISIS, and what happened in Syria was unique; therefore, we have friends in the region and are by each other's sides."
Velayati congratulated Iraqis for overcoming hardship, enduring difficulties, and forming a government.
"The histories of Iran and Iraq are very similar, and there never was a war between us and Iraq. On the contrary, the war waged by Saddam was against the people of both countries, and this act of aggression was not carried out with the will of the Iraqi people," the top advisor underlined.
He also praised the Popular Mobilization Forces' discipline, saying they showed a lot of maturities when the protestors, such as the supporters of the Sadrist Movement, took to the streets. He highlighted how they did not oppose the right to assembly to protect the public interest.
"The people of Iraq lived for a long time under a dictatorship imposed by the Baathist party, and when the Americans came in, no country kicked them out in a manner as quick or influential as the Iraqi people," he recalled. "Iran supports Iraq."
Commenting on Tehran's relationship with Lebanon's Hezbollah, Veltayti said to Al-Mayadden, "Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah resisted heroically in a region north of the Red Sea known historically as Clysma. They told 'Israel' that it had no right to violate Lebanon's energy resources."
"I have known Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah for 40 years. He has been defending the country in Lebanon's South and North and the historic region north of the Red Sea.
"We support Lebanon, and the maritime border must be specified, and 'Israel' must leave Lebanon's maritime area," the top Iranian advisor added.