Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Hassan Firouzabadi said here on Thursday that the Iranian nation’s resistance during the eight-year Sacred Defense served as a model for other world nations. Addressing a ceremony commemorating the Sacred Defense Week held at the mausoleum of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, the late Imam Khomeini, he said the strategy of the armed forces is of defense and deterrent nature. He reiterated that the Islamic Republic of Iran, is by no means, intended to invade any country while it would give a crushing response to any aggression. “The Iranian nation’s resistance during the eight-year Sacred Defense, despite political, military and economic pressures, reveals its serious resolve,” he said, noting that the Iranians will spare no effort to defend the lofty Islamic values and ideals. Middle East and Persian Gulf enjoy a special strategic situation and Iran is considered as an important country in the region’s political geography, he said. Referring to the plots hatched by the enemies in the early years of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Firouzabadi noted that they imposed the protracted war on the country to counter the Revolution. Firouzabadi further stressed that today, the Isalmic Republic of Iran serves as an appropriate model for the regional nations including those of Palestine and Lebanon. The recent regional developments have proved that the US and the Zionist regime can be defeated through resistance of regional nations, he said. Referring to Iran’s progress and achievements in various fields, he said the Islamic Republic is the messenger of peace and friendship while it would strongly counter any possible aggression. September 22 is the start of the Sacred Defense Week in Iran which marks the anniversary of the beginning of Iraq’s eight-year imposed war against the Islamic Republic.