TEHRAN, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Tehran's interim Friday Prayers Leader Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami said that the Iranian nation will resist the West's ongoing economic pressure and overcome their " economic war," semi-official Fars news agency reported.
The Islamic republic will not surrender to pressure, Khatami said, adding that "the global arrogance will fail in its all-out economic war against Iran."
"These pressure won't last. The Iranian nation has experienced how to live with problems, but they (Western powers) don't have this experience," he was quoted as saying.
On Tuesday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the West has launched an "economic battle" against the Islamic republic.
The UN Security Council imposed four rounds of sanctions on Iran between 2006 and 2010 over its refusal to halt its nuclear enrichment program, which Western countries suspect could be used to develop nuclear weapons.
The United States and European Union have imposed and expanded sanctions of their own over the years despite Iran's insistence on the peaceful nature of its nuclear program.
On Wednesday, Supreme Leader of Islamic republic Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that sanctions and pressure cannot force the Iranian nation to surrender since the Iranians have always withstood pressure and grown more powerful.
Also, Iranian parliament's presiding board member Abdolreza Mesri said Friday that the West must acknowledge that the sanctions against the Islamic republic were "wrong from the very basis," Fars reported.
Mesri added that Iran has always been open to dialogue over its nuclear energy program.
Iran has held three rounds of talks with the U.S., Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany -- the so-called P5+1, over its uranium enrichment program since mid-April, but made no breakthrough.
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