TEHRAN — Iran will overcome 'economic terrorism' through national resilience and coordinated government action, Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said, accusing Western countries of pursuing a failed strategy of pressure and sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Khatibzadeh, who heads the Foreign Ministry’s Center for Political and International Studies, made the remarks to reporters on the sidelines of a ceremony marking the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism.

He said Iran is engaged in a “historic, national, patriotic, revolutionary and Islamic struggle,” adding that victory would ultimately belong to those who demonstrate perseverance.

“Iranian governments and the entire system have a duty to safeguard national interests and security,” Khatibzadeh said, stressing that President Masoud Pezeshkian’s administration would mobilize all available capacities, in cooperation with the heads of the three branches of government, to neutralize the effects of sanctions.

He was referring to the continuation of the United States’ maximum-pressure policy and economic sanctions against Iran, which Tehran has long described as a form of economic warfare.

Khatibzadeh said the latest pressure campaign was rooted in the failure of Iran’s adversaries during an earlier stage of the conflict. He accused Western governments of repeatedly attempting to weaken Iran by exerting economic pressure and promoting 'flawed narratives' in international media.

“They explicitly say they impose sanctions to make the Iranian people desperate and exhaust their resilience,” he said.

Khatibzadeh also argued that the current pressure campaign was not fundamentally different from policies pursued by previous U.S. administrations. Referring to former President Barack Obama’s sanctions policy, he said earlier attempts to bring Iran to its knees through so-called 'crippling sanctions' had failed. He predicted that those pursuing similar policies today would eventually 'be consigned to the dustbin of history.'

He further described Iran’s adversaries as a “terror front,” accusing them of employing different forms of 'terrorism against the country.'

The official cited the Shajareh Tayyebeh school massacre in Minab as one manifestation of terrorism and said Iran was now also confronting what he called economic terrorism, whose victims, he argued, were ordinary Iranians.

Khatibzadeh said the Foreign Ministry regarded documenting and pursuing such cases as part of its institutional responsibility. “We cannot and must not overlook the blood of each and every child of this nation,” he said.

According to Khatibzadeh, hundreds of international documents concerning 'new acts of terrorism' have been prepared by the Foreign Ministry over the past year and several months and submitted to international organizations.

He also accused the United States, Israel and some of their allies of seeking to prevent such cases from reaching international bodies. 'Tehran would continue efforts to pursue accountability through diplomatic channels,' added the diplomat.

'Terrorism has no good or bad side,' Khatibzadeh said, arguing that international relations should not be governed by 'the logic of force.'

He pledged that Iran’s diplomatic apparatus would continue pursuing those responsible for 'acts of terrorism and would not allow alleged perpetrators to remain without accountability.'

Khatibzadeh’s remarks came as Tehran continues to frame economic sanctions and maximum-pressure policies as part of a broader confrontation with Iran, while emphasizing domestic resilience, coordination among state institutions and diplomatic efforts to challenge the measures internationally.

Despite the pressure, he said, Iran had prevailed in previous confrontations and would do so again.

“If Western countries follow the same wrong path a thousand times, they will fail again,” Khatibzadeh said.