WANA (Jan 06) – A senior commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said the United States is entering a phase of decline, arguing that the tools Washington once used to manage global affairs are no longer effective and that its increasing reliance on force signals collapse rather than strength.

 

Speaking on Tuesday, Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, said the United States is “on a downward slope” because the mechanisms it created—such as sanctions and international institutions—no longer function as intended. “America is now forced to resort to naked force, which is itself a sign of disintegration,” he said.

 

Vahidi described actions such as the abduction of a country’s president or the assassination of Iran’s top anti-terror commander, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, as signs of weakness rather than power. “These are not indications of strength, but the height of humiliation and evidence of collapse,” he stated.

 

He said the outcome of Soleimani’s actions and efforts was the launch of the “Al-Aqsa Storm” operation, which, according to Vahidi, exposed the true nature of Israel to the world. “Today, this regime has become the most despised in the world,” he said.

 

The IRGC deputy commander added that figures such as Soleimani served as guiding lights, saying this leadership helped frustrate what he called enemy calculations. Referring to the recent 12-day war, Vahidi said public resistance overturned enemy equations and demonstrated the power of the Iranian nation’s will. He said similar outcomes had been achieved by Soleimani’s efforts in other regions.

 

Vahidi stressed that Iran does not fear its adversaries and will not submit to U.S. dominance. “With steadfastness, the future undoubtedly belongs to Islam and the Iranian nation,” he said, urging people not to be intimidated by what he called enemy propaganda.

 

Addressing allegations that Iran operates proxy forces abroad, Vahidi rejected the claim as “completely false.” He said Iran has no proxy groups and is not pursuing geopolitical competition in other countries. “What we seek is the restoration of the national will of nations so they can decide their own fate, and our martyr did exactly that,” he said.

 

According to Vahidi, Western powers label popular movements as Iranian proxies because they fear awakened nations. He said Soleimani played a major role in this awakening, adding that once nations achieve self-awareness, they can no longer be dominated. “This movement, shaped by our martyr, continues to move forward,” he said.