Iranian leader Sayyed Ali Khamenei

Iranian leader Sayyed Ali Khamenei hailed Iran's armed forces in a virtual address to a ceremony held for graduates of military academies in Tehran Sunday, describing them as "a defensive shield in the true sense of the word against the hard threats of the external and internal enemies".

Attaining security without relying on foreigners

Khamenei defined security as the "basic infrastructure of all essential activities" for Iran’s development, adding that it is important to attain security without relying on foreigners.

"The interference of foreigners in the region is a source of discord and damage. All issues and incidents must be resolved without foreign interference and the countries of the region should follow the example of Iran and the armed forces of the Islamic Republic for power and rationality," he said.

Khamenei stressed that while security is normal for Iran, many countries - even in Europe - have a problem achieving it, referring to a current row between France and an emerging US-led Anglo alliance over submarines snub.

"When European countries feel having a shortage in achieving lasting security because of their reliance on the United States, which is not opposed to Europe, the account of other countries that have placed their armed forces under the control of the United States and other foreigners is obvious," the Leader said.

The top Iranian figure tersely avowed that “those who believe this will soon be slapped because foreigners' direct or indirect interference in the security, war, and peace of any country is a catastrophic disaster."

US Failure in Afghanistan

On the hasty withdrawal of well-armed US troops from Afghanistan in August, Khamenei depicted it as an example of power pretension that exposed its void.

"The Americans launched a military campaign against Afghanistan 20 years ago to overthrow the Taliban, and during this long occupation, they committed many massacres and atrocities and caused great damage, but after all the material and human costs, they handed over the government to the Taliban and departed - a fact that should serve as a lesson to all countries," he concluded.