Khamenei responds to Obama´s speech

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Source: CCTV.com | 03-22-2009 13:10

Obama offers "new beginning" with Iran

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says Iran is willing to change if US President Barack Obama changes his country's policy towards the Islamic Republic.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivers a sermon during his visit to Mashhad, east of Tehran, March 21, 2009. REUTERS

Khamenei said the US has put forward the slogan of change, but says his country has not seen any change so far.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's Supreme Leader, said, "Change in words is not enough, although we have not seen change in words either. Change must be real. We should tell US officials that the change he is talking about is a must."

Khamenei gave a long list of what he called US mistakes over the past 30 years. It included sanctions against Tehran, support of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, and support of opposition groups to topple the government.

Khamenei's remarks came one day after Obama released a video message calling for a "new beginning" of engagement with Iran.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei