Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reiterated Monday that Tehran wants a diplomatic resolution to the eight-month-old war with the U.S. and Israel, but the spokesman for the ruling regime said his country is prepared to fight back if hostilities are renewed.
On Monday, Mr. Araghchi told the official Islamic Republic News Agency that Washington now has to choose between a “wise path” of negotiations and repeating the “mistake of military aggression.”
“We have announced our specific conditions and presented our formulated plan,” he said, according to IRNA. “Now everything depends on how much political rationality prevails on the American side.”
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After his team departed Qatar on Sunday, Mr. Araghchi said the consultations through mediators had been “very intensive.”
President Trump has repeatedly warned that U.S. strikes against Iran remain an option as indirect talks continue through Qatari mediators. On Sunday, Mr. Trump held a campaign rally in Dubuque, Iowa, to rally support for Republican candidates two days ahead of the midterm elections.
Mr. Trump told reporters that the Pentagon still has “one or two sites” in Iran that the U.S. could take out. That includes Pickaxe Mountain, where the Tehran regime has been excavating a deep, heavily fortified tunnel network for its nuclear program.
“The only reason why I’m not finished with Iran is I want to be nice. I want to try and save all those lives if I can,” Mr. Trump told supporters. “But at some point, we’re going to have to give them the hammer.”
The Iranian foreign minister said any renewed U.S. military action would draw a response “far harsher and more regretful than before.”
“The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the full resumption of talks are directly contingent upon the unconditional acceptance of Iran’s rightful conditions,” Mr. Araghchi said.
The Associated Press reported Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for another wave of strikes on Iran after Tuesday’s midterm elections in the United States.
Mr. Netanyahu pressed for strikes during a call over the weekend with Mr. Trump, who would not commit to taking military action, according to the AP report.
Other U.S. allies in the Middle East, citing concerns about the conflict engulfing the region, are lobbying the Trump administration to find a diplomatic solution.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Monday that Tehran will not surrender to attacks from the West.
“Iran’s enemies cannot force the country into submission through military aggression,” Mr. Pezeshkian said from Tehran. “Iran would firmly resist its enemies’ lies and excessive demands. Efforts must be made to strengthen public resilience and address people’s concerns and worries.”
On Sunday, Iran warned that a renewed war with the U.S. could last longer than the previous round of fighting between the countries.
“A potential future war could last longer than previous conflicts, and the American president would not be in a position to dictate the timing, or the conditions, of its conclusion,” Iranian army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia said, according to Iranian state television.
On Monday, a spokesman for the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said the group had launched two new drone attacks on Saudi Arabia over the past 48 hours that targeted King Fahd International Airport and an early warning radar site.
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