Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has said the United States has made "miscalculations" about Iran over the past 46 years, saying his audience is those who are “intimidated” by American policies, his website reported on January 8.

“Those who are intimidated by American policies should not be, and should pay enough attention to this basic and continuous weakness of the US,” he said at a public meeting on January 8.

The leader called on the media to shatter the “illusion of the US authority” in the minds of the people.

His remarks come ahead of the US President-elect Donald Trump’s official inauguration on January 20. Trump unleashed a maximum pressure campaign against Tehran during his previous term and is known for its hawkish policies against the Islamic Republic.

The Iranian leader claimed the US had taken possession of the country during the rule of the former Shah. Still, it was pulled out of his grasp after the 1979 Iranian "Islamic" Revolution, sparking its hatred and implacable grudge toward the Islamic Republic.

Referring to recently deceased US President Carter's visit to Tehran on December 31, 1977, and his false praise of Mohammad Reza and description of Pahlavi's Iran as an "island of stability," the Supreme Leader added: "The Iran of 1977 that Carter considered desirable for America was, in terms of foreign policy, completely subservient to Americans and serving their interests," he said.

He added, "In terms of domestic policy, witnessing severe suppression of all opposing and even different movements from the regime; economically having enormous oil sale income but extremely class-divided; scientifically and technologically backward; and culturally a country where Western corruption, immodesty, and vulgarity were spreading daily."

Khamenei said: "The 19 Dey uprising pulled 'America's desired Iran' from their clutches, but America still dreams of that Iran. However, just as Carter took this dream to his grave, other Americans will take it to theirs as well."

Khamenei accused the US of engaging in 'software warfare' against Iran by spreading misinformation and distorting the truth, which influences certain individuals.

“The main task is to tear the veil of the illusion of the enemy's authority, to break it, and to prevent the enemy's propaganda from affecting public opinion,” he said.

The key, he added, is to distrust the enemy, recognise that its propaganda aimed at influencing public opinion is deceitful and false, and reject it immediately. He urged decision-makers across various sectors to prioritise the country's interests over the demands and wishes of the US and Israel.

“If the officials of our country in any period, in making decisions on various issues, accept the unreasonable expectations of the Americans and consider their interests, they have threatened the country's democracy and republicanism,” he said.

Khamenei once again reiterated that the resistance front is alive, must survive, and must become stronger daily.

“We support the resistance in Gaza, in the West Bank, in Lebanon, in Yemen, and wherever they stand up to the malign move of the Zionist regime and resist it,” he said.