Khamenei Orders Acceleration of Nuclear Weapon Production to Ensure Iranian Regime’s Survival

Khamenei’s Order to Complete and Accelerate the Production of Nuclear Weapons to Ensure the Regime’s Survival

The Regime Leaders’ Preparations to Raise the “Level of Deterrence” and “Reconsider the Nuclear Doctrine”

Ali Khamenei, simultaneously with Massoud Pezeshkian taking office, has ordered the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to complete and accelerate the project of building nuclear bombs. Preparations in the parliament, Friday prayers, and the positions of experts and officials of the dominant faction of the regime are all in this direction.

The main reason is a strategic way out of the quagmire of war and ensuring the survival of the regime with a nuclear bomb, which has been the agenda of the Velayat-e Faqih regime in its secret nuclear program since 1990, one year after Khomeini’s death.

In a confidential internal report by the IRGC addressed to the relevant officials in the nuclear project, Khamenei’s intended directive is justified as follows: the regime’s missile capability is indeed an important factor in the “deterrent power of the Islamic Republic,” but considering the “ongoing war in the region” and the prospect of its expansion, the system needs a “higher level of deterrence,” and the current balance will not suffice for the “next stages” of war. Under such circumstances, “the best solution is a change in nuclear doctrine and designing a new model of power balance.” Because in a “classical battle,” the enemy’s capabilities, with “arrogance” support, cause trouble, and in a “long conventional war,” the system will face “problems.” Therefore, the time has come to take the “final step”…

In another report after the regime’s second missile attack on October 1, it was stated that in the “True Promise 2” operation, “Khorramshahr, Ghadr, Emad, Kheibar, Qiam, Shahab-3, and the hypersonic Fat’h-1 ballistic missiles were used,” but “repeating similar missile attacks will not bring any new achievements.” Therefore, the next step must be to establish a balance between “massive destructive power” and a “higher level of deterrence.”

The following are some facts preparing the ground in the state-run media:

1. On October 5, Hassan Khomeini explicitly said, “Our military deterrence must rise to a higher level; this deterrence is based on power, not smiles. I support any negotiations, but velvet gloves must cover iron fists; if your hands are not made of iron, they will be crushed… Our military deterrence must rise to a higher level. The world has reached a point today where we need to strengthen our deterrence.”
2. On October 9, 39 members of the regime’s parliament, in a letter to the Supreme National Security Council, called for a change in the regime’s defense doctrine and the inclusion of nuclear weapons in it. Hassan-Ali Akhlaqi Amiri, a member of the parliament’s cultural commission, while announcing this letter, referred to Khamenei’s “fatwa” prohibiting nuclear weapons and said, “In Imamiyyah jurisprudence, time and place affect the change of rulings, and secondary rulings can replace primary ones.”
3. On October 9, Mohammadreza Sabaghian, a member of the regime’s parliament, said that they would ask Khamenei “if he deems it appropriate, to change the strategy and fatwa regarding the construction of nuclear weapons. Building a ‘nuclear weapon’ will be easy for us… In the current situation, the ability to build nuclear weapons is necessary for creating deterrence and ensuring national security… The enemy seeks to weaken Iran’s deterrence capabilities and resistance forces through negotiations, assassinations, and military threats. We must not neglect to strengthen our deterrence.”
4. On October 11, Kamal Kharrazi, head of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, in an interview with Al Jazeera, said, “If the Zionist regime dares to harm Iran’s nuclear facilities, our level of deterrence will change, and if Iran’s existence is threatened, we will be forced to change our nuclear doctrine.”
5. On October 12, Brigadier General Haqtalab, the head of the “IRGC Nuclear Facilities Protection and Security” unit, said, “Revising the nuclear doctrine and policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran and moving away from past declared considerations is plausible and conceivable.”
6. On October 12, Brigadier General Rasool Sanaei Rad, political deputy of the Commander-in-Chief’s Political-Ideological Office, said, “The aim of striking nuclear centers will undoubtedly impact calculations during and after the war… Some politicians have raised the possibility of changes in strategic nuclear policies so far.”
7. On October 12, Ahmad Naderi, a member of the regime’s parliament, said, “I have repeatedly said and written that raising the level of deterrence of the Islamic Republic of Iran means revising the nuclear doctrine… This revision is necessary for the anarchic international political environment, given the significant threats from competitors and enemies. Only nuclear powers can create a balance of power.”
8. On October 12, Mohammad Manan Raisi, another parliament member, said: “The nuclear doctrine of the Islamic Republic must change. Ayatollah Khamenei’s religious ruling on the prohibition of nuclear weapons can also change under today’s circumstances… To achieve maximum deterrence, there is no other option but to change the regime’s nuclear doctrine… Currently, we are not far from this goal, and fortunately, over the past year, we have made significant progress in the nuclear field, with God’s help, we can achieve this capability within less than six months… In such conditions, we should not continue moving one-way, meaning we should not be solely committed to global treaties.”

For 33 years (since June 1991) the Iranian Resistance has been the only party to hold 120 press conferences and especially expose the regime’s secret uranium enrichment projects in Natanz and the heavy water project in Arak, and has informed the Iranian people of an anti-national project and the world of a grave and serious threat.

Now, the Iranian Resistance, once again emphasizes the need to activate the “snapback mechanism” in UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and reactivate the suspended resolutions concerning the regime’s nuclear projects. Delays and hesitations give religious fascism the time and opportunity for its sinister plans. The final solution to save Iran and the region from the regime’s nuclear threat is the overthrow of this regime by the people and the Iranian Resistance.

National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)

Defense and Strategic Research Committee

14 October 2024