Iran warned this Saturday that its Armed Forces are “fully prepared”, “with their finger on the trigger” and closely monitoring the movements of the “enemy”, in reference to USAwhich has deployed a large fleet to the Middle East for possible military action against Tehran.
“The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran are in a state of maximum defensive and military alertthe enemy’s movements in the region are precisely monitored and we have our finger on the trigger,” said the commander-in-chief of the Iranian Army, General Amir Hatamias reported by the Mehr agency.
Hatami assured that “if the enemy makes a mistake, it will undoubtedly endanger its own security, the security of the region and that of the Zionist regime (Israel).”
His statements come at a time of growing tensions with the United States, which has deployed a fleet led by the United States to the Middle East. aircraft carrier United States ‘Abraham Lincoln’along with his escort group, amid threats from the American president, Donald Trumpto attack if Tehran does not negotiate an agreement on its nuclear program and if it continues with the repression of the protesters.
Open to negotiate
This Friday, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, declared during his visit to Turkey that his country is willing to negotiate with the United States a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear dispute, in “equitable and fair” negotiations.
The head of Iranian diplomacy at the same time criticized the “contradictions” of the United States and assured that “a military attack is not an option”, since the aerial bombardments last June by the US and Israel “did not achieve their objective”, in reference to the 12-day war during which American fighters bombed Iranian nuclear facilities.
“They suffered a defeat in June. If they try again, the same thing will happen. The United States makes a proposal to negotiate, but a negotiation cannot start with threats. If they want a fair and reasonable negotiation, Iran is always ready,” Araghchi stressed in a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, in Istanbul.
In recent days, Türkiye has been trying to mediate between Tehran and Washington to prevent a new military escalation in the Middle East region and facilitate a new round of nuclear negotiationswhich have been stagnant since the 12-day war in June.
Exercises in the Strait of Hormuz
On Friday, the US central command (CENTCOM) said that the Revolutionary Guard, the regime’s ideological army, will carry out “a Two-day live-fire naval exercise in the Strait of Hormuza very delicate point through which liquefied gas and oil from the Persian Gulf transit.
In a statement, CENTCOM advised the Guard to refrain from “any unsafe and unprofessional behavior near American forces.”
The United States classified this body as terrorist organization in 2019, under Trump’s first term. An initiative that the European Union supported this Thursday, and to which Iran responded angrily, promising a response.
