Iran: The Americans have many weaknesses

FP Blogger at Large MEMRI In an interview with Iran’s Channel 2 on November 12, Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi stated that Iran had based its strategy on the U.S. military’s strengths and weaknesses. He discussed the capabilities of the Shahab missiles and the weaknesses and the cowardice of the U.S. ...

By
606085_clip_1318.thumbnail5.jpg
606085_clip_1318.thumbnail5.jpg

FP Blogger at Large
MEMRI
In an interview with Iran's Channel 2 on November 12, Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi stated that Iran had based its strategy on the U.S. military's strengths and weaknesses. He discussed the capabilities of the Shahab missiles and the weaknesses and the cowardice of the U.S. military, claiming among other things that the Iranian military could disrupt enemy satellite systems. 

FP Blogger at Large
MEMRI

In an interview with Iran’s Channel 2 on November 12, Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi stated that Iran had based its strategy on the U.S. military’s strengths and weaknesses. He discussed the capabilities of the Shahab missiles and the weaknesses and the cowardice of the U.S. military, claiming among other things that the Iranian military could disrupt enemy satellite systems. 

General Yahya Rahim Safavi: Naturally, a 20-30 meter [deviation] is acceptable, because the force of the explosion and the radius of the shockwaves exceed 20 or 30 meters…

The Americans and the countries that have satellite systems – especially those that monitor Iran’s airspace or the atmosphere – can see our missile launchings clearly – not the radar systems, but the satellites of the various countries. They see both the launching and landing points. It is completely obvious to them that these were real maneuvers. In fact, the maneuvers were carried out with combat weapons, and were not just for show … The Americans have many weaknesses.

In fact, in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, they clearly displayed their strengths and weaknesses. We have planned our strategy precisely on the basis of their strengths and weaknesses…

We don’t see any motivation among the American forces in Iraq. They are very cowardly. There are even scenes from Iraq in which they are seen crying. When their commanders encounter a problem, they burst into tears. We did not see such spectacles in the eight years of the Iran-Iraq war. I can therefore say that our advantage over the foreign forces is moral and human.

To view the entire transcript

  To view the clip

The Middle East Media Research Institute contributes a regular series of posts about media in the Middle East for Passport.

More from Foreign Policy

Keri Russell as Kate Wyler walks by a State Department Seal from a scene in The Diplomat, a new Netflix show about the foreign service.
Keri Russell as Kate Wyler walks by a State Department Seal from a scene in The Diplomat, a new Netflix show about the foreign service.

At Long Last, the Foreign Service Gets the Netflix Treatment

Keri Russell gets Drexel furniture but no Senate confirmation hearing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron speak in the garden of the governor of Guangdong's residence in Guangzhou, China, on April 7.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron speak in the garden of the governor of Guangdong's residence in Guangzhou, China, on April 7.

How Macron Is Blocking EU Strategy on Russia and China

As a strategic consensus emerges in Europe, France is in the way.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin greets U.S. President George W. Bush prior to a meeting of APEC leaders in 2001.
Chinese President Jiang Zemin greets U.S. President George W. Bush prior to a meeting of APEC leaders in 2001.

What the Bush-Obama China Memos Reveal

Newly declassified documents contain important lessons for U.S. China policy.

A girl stands atop a destroyed Russian tank.
A girl stands atop a destroyed Russian tank.

Russia’s Boom Business Goes Bust

Moscow’s arms exports have fallen to levels not seen since the Soviet Union’s collapse.