Iranian President Hassan Rouhani: Iran’s Nuclear Industries Will Prosper in the Coming Years; American’s “leg” and “hand” will be cut off from the region; PMU, Hizbullah, Houthis are Not Iranian Proxies

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a January 8, 2020 address that aired on IRINN TV (Iran) that for the first time, Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization is not bound by any limits to its research, uranium enrichment, or construction and installation of centrifuges, and that Iran’s nuclear industry will prosper in the coming years. He threatened that American’s “leg” and “hand” will be cut off from the region as the ultimate revenge for the killing of Qasem Soleimani, and he denied that Iran has any proxies in the region. Rather, he said that the PMU in Iraq, Hizbullah in Lebanon, and other movements in the region are legitimate bodies that have their own interests and that are not subservient to Iran. Rouhani added: “If tomorrow [the Americans] face problems on the global level, they should not say that it was at Iran’s orders.”

Hassan Rouhani: "We declared for the whole word to hear: Today, our Atomic Energy Organization is not bound by any limits in research and development, in the building of different kinds of centrifuges, their installation, using them for enrichment, the quantity of enrichment, the level of enrichment, or the percentage of enrichment… This is happening for the first time. It so happens that in the past year or two, the Atomic Energy Organization has prepared itself well. Today, with this instruction, we will witness our nuclear industries prosper.

[…]

"They cut off the hand of our dear Soleimani. In the footage and pictures, you saw his dear hand next to his body. His revenge will be when we cut off America's leg in the region. If America's leg is severed from the region – as well as its invading hand – once and for all, this will be the real revenge and the final response by the region's peoples to America. Let me add this: If there is an operation in another country, the Americans shouldn't say that these are Iran's proxy forces. We don't have proxy forces. You got that wrong from the start. The people of the region are awake and they act freely on their own. They are not subservient to us and they do not get orders from us. These are not our forces. The PMU are part of the official Iraqi armed forces, and they answer to the commander-in-chief of the armed forces in Iraq. In Lebanon, Hizbullah is part of the government and parliament. They are part of the ruling administration in Lebanon. Hizbullah in Lebanon does not answer to Iran. They have their own plans and goals, and they act to achieve them. The people in Yemen do not answer to us. They are fighting for their own country. The people of Yemen may again do things like in the case of Aramco. This has nothing to do with Iran's regime, people, or armed forces. The Americans should not make any mistake. If tomorrow they face problems on the global level, they should not say that it was at Iran's orders."