Tehran (dpa) – Iran would not change its policies despite new sanction plans by the world powers, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Monday. Iran is facing new sanctions due to its continued uncompromising stance in its disputed nuclear programme. The latest Western sanctions aim at Iran's Central Bank and oil exports. “The imperialistic block (West) tries to intimidate Iran's government and people with sanctions but the Iranian nation has knowingly chosen its path and will continue it,” the ayatollah said in a speech carried on state television. “The whole Islamic establishment will decisively stick to its principles and not be intimidated by any threats,” Khamenei, who according to constitution, has the final say on all state affairs, added in a meeting with senior clerics in Tehran. Iranian generals have warned of possibly closing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital international oil route in the Persian Gulf, blocking a considerable share of global oil exports, if oil sanctions were imposed. Iran also vowed not only to continue its nuclear work, but also increase the uranium enrichment level from 3.5 to 4 and even 20 percent. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, if implemented by Iran, could not only lead to a serious energy crisis but also to a possible military confrontation between Iran and the US forces deployed in the Persian Gulf. Iran's revolutionary guards' commander, Mohammad-Ali Jafari, said on Monday that Iran was ready for any military action by the US. Iran this month held a navy manoeuvre near the Strait of Hormuz and another wargame in south-eastern Iran near the borders to Afghanistan. The guards plan another navy maneuver in the Gulf in February. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/0Ps6b Tags: Ali Khamenei, sanctions Section: Iran, Latest News
