In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. With the grace of God and salutation to great prophets and infallible imams, God’s peace and benediction be upon them, now that the military officials, including the IRGC and the Military commanders who are war specialists, openly confess that the Islamic military will not be victorious for some time, and considering that the considerate military and political officials of the Islamic republic see the continuation of the war not advisable at all, and are firmly pointing out that, under no circumstances and at any price, they can obtain even one-tenth of the weapons put at Saddam’s disposal by the Eastern and Western arrogant [powers], and in view of the shocking letter of the IRGC commander, which is among tens of military and political reports that I have received after recent instances of defeat, and taking into account the view of the deputy commander of the Armed Forces that the IRGC commander is one of the few commanders who believes in the continuation of the war providing that the needed equipment can be procured, and in the light of the enemy’s extensive use of chemical weapons and our lack of equipment to neutralize them, I give my consent to the cease-fire, and in order to clarify the reasons for taking this bitter decision, I hereby refer to some points of the IRGC commander’s letter dated 2.4.1367 [23 June 1988].