IN THE NAME OF GOD, THE COMPASSIONATE, THE MERCIFUL

1.  At the beginning of this speech, I am very pleased to hold the Islamic Republic of Iran’s national celebration in your presence, dear guests, Ambassadors and members of diplomatic missions, government officials and representatives of social, economic and cultural sectors, on the occasion of the 38^th anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

On this day in 1979 the revolution led by Imam Khomeini (PBUH) has been set up, and it was indeed the evolution of the century. With the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, the Shah’s dictatorship, whose most important characteristic was to protect the interests of the superpowers, has been abolished. The Shah’s regime was rude and brutal towards the nation, and widespread corruption had entirely engulfed the Shah dominion.

In the theory of Imam Khomeini (PBUH) the work of the government, was based on Islamic thought and the real rule of people, therefore the form of government organization was called the Islamic Republic, so these two pillars to be always taken into consideration. In Imam Khomeini’s view, the people are the axis of all aspects of the country, including politics, economy, and culture. All state institutions were established either directly or through the people’s vote. Even the Supreme Leader, which is the highest level in the country, is designated by the Assembly of Experts, its members being elected by the people’s vote. The Iranian nation is proud that, with the fruitful results of the thought of the Islamic Revolution founder and with the presence in all fields, participation and centrality of the people in all domains, and a focus on people in this territory, the dignity of Iran is guaranteed.

In Imam Khomeini’s view, independence in all its aspects was introduced as a factor of national dignity. On this basis there is no doubt that Iran today, without depending on foreign powers, is the axis of stability, security, and positive developments in the region. Despite all the international pressure of the great powers, Iran today has successfully attained nuclear knowledge for peaceful purposes, and nowadays Iran is the main power in the fight against terrorism in the region.

2. After two years of fortitude and perseverance of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear team headed by Doctor Javad Zarif, Iran’s Foreign Minister, ultimately in July 2015 the final nuclear deal has been reached and beginning with January 16^th last year the agreement named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) has actually entered into its implementation level. With the lifting of the unjust sanctions and the creation of a new atmosphere for the cooperation of the Islamic Republic of Iran with the outside world, and with the influx of high-level delegations especially from Europe to Tehran, the firm and immediate determination of both sides to restore the relations in all fields, as well as other cooperation related to energy, technology, policy, culture and also security, has taken shape.

The need to increase cooperation between Iran and Europe in the fight against violence and extremism as well as the efforts to quickly restore peace and stability in the Middle East is so obvious that paying insufficient attention to this issue is a threat to both sides. Iran as a country that is located in the heart of the Middle East and Europe as the region’s immediate neighbor, both have rightful and legitimate concerns related to the continuation of war and bloodshed, and the refugee crisis in the Middle East, especially in the three countries of Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Security cannot be achieved at the expense of creating insecurity for others. In fact, no nation can achieve its interests without having to consider the interests of others. According to the confessions of friend and foe, if there was no contribution of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the region, there wouldn’t be so many victories achieved in the fight against terrorism, and perhaps now we would have witnessed the presence and establishment of Daesh governments in some countries in the region.

3. In the field of economic independence, Imam Khomeini (PBUH) has inspired such a spirit to the youth of Iran that during Saddam’s imposed war against Iran, that despite all sanctions, they have been equipped with a variety of new technologies. Therefore, as a result of this national strategy, nowadays the contribution of industry and mining sectors to GDP has increased from 16% in the Islamic Revolution year to 26%. For example, in the steel sector, the production has increased by more than 4 thousand percent, meaning from less than 400 tons in 1979 to 18 million tons.

In the social security sector, there were 6 million people covered in 1979, but now 42 million people are covered by a social pension, and in recent years almost all people are covered by health insurance.

During the revolutionary year 1979, drinking water in the rural areas included 25 percent of the villages, while today over 90 percent of villages have safe drinking water. Child mortality rate was 111 per thousand, and today has reached 14 per thousand.

In the field of transport, the freeways have registered 795 percent growth, highways 3 thousand percent growth, and the capacity of commercial ports have registered one thousand and 900 percent growth. In the maritime transit we have registered 21 thousand percent growth.

4. Here, I would like to thank the government officials and the private sector managers of Romania for their actions, positive attitude and forward views, and I assure them that there is a similar view in the Islamic Republic of Iran towards a comprehensive expansion of relations between Iran and Romania in various fields of economy, culture, science, and technology, as well as in the political field, regional cooperation, and fight against extremism and terrorism, which is our common point in this region.

The last year’s bilateral meetings of the foreign ministers of Iran and Romania in the capitals of the two countries, as well as the arrangements for organizing the meeting of the Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation between Iran and Romania, are showing more than anything that there is political will in both countries to enhance the development of bilateral relations, particularly the economic ties.

I would like to note that over the past year we had a very important and significant evolution in our bilateral economic relations. The trade between the two countries in 2016, after the entry into force of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action has reached approximately 500 million dollars, which compared to one year before has increased by two and a half times. However, in our opinion, the economic capacity of Iran and Romania, and especially the capacity of the private sector, is far more than this rate. I believe that with the existing capacity and the new conditions after the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action new opportunities and capacities have been provided for both countries, so that economic relations prove fruitful and useful for both countries in this relaxed and proper atmosphere for development.

Fortunately, under the protection of the existing security in Iran, there has been created the possibility for Iranian and Romanian entrepreneurs to further boost their cooperation more than before.

In an increasingly competitive global economy, the process of convergence and economic cooperation with countries is facing many challenges, especially the political developments in the United States, as well as developments in Europe. But the Islamic Republic of Iran, in these difficult circumstances, is a reliable and stable partner for long-term economic and sustainable cooperation, which is based on mutual interests with the European countries, including Romania, given the long history of the two countries.

Certainly, on this path, entrepreneurs in the private sector enjoy a special and central position, and the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran will seriously support the efforts of the economic actors. The endogenous and exogenous economy is the main axis of the economic development strategy of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the decades to come.

5- Once again, I thank you all for participating in tonight’s celebration along with us. I wish health and success for the government and people of Romania, and I also wish security, peace, friendship, and a peaceful coexistence for the human society.

Thank you.