US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has told US media that reaching a peace deal with Iran would be extremely difficult and that economic pressure would continue until Tehran stopped targeting commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran is ready for diplomacy but will defend itself, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said in an article published in the Financial Times.
“While Iran is firmly committed to seeking a dignified peaceful resolution to the conflict, we are also fully prepared to defend ourselves,” he wrote, according to Al Jazeera.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the US cannot expect dialogue with Iran while imposing a blockade and threatening the country.
In remarks carried by Iranian state media, he said the US “must recognise the rights of our nation and cease their bullying and aggression; only then can we sit down together and engage in dialogue.”
“It is unacceptable to block all avenues and issue threats while simultaneously demanding talks,” he added.
Pezeshkian also accused the US of reneging on agreements it had entered into.
“I believe that one should not enter into a pact lightly, but once a pact is made, one must remain committed to it until the end – even if it proves disadvantageous,” he said.
Meanwhile, four rockets targeted the headquarters of the Kurdistan Freedom Party, an Iranian opposition group, in Erbil, northern Iraq, sources told Al Jazeera Arabic.
In a separate development, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Deputy Commander for Political Affairs General Yadollah Javani warned of retaliation against any attacks on Iranian infrastructure.
Speaking to the state-run Al-Alam News Network, Javani said, “Should they (the US and its allies) attempt to damage our infrastructure, the Islamic Republic will naturally bring its full power to bear.”
He added, “[Iran] could easily destroy their assets – including the seven critical internet cables running beneath the waters of the Strait of Hormuz – thereby inflicting serious damage upon the United States and its regional allies.”
Iran’s newly appointed Defence Minister Mehrdad Akhlaghi said he had devoted his “first hour in office to meeting the needs of the IRGC aerospace force and the army’s air defence force”.
“For us, responding to repeated threats is not a war of words; it is turning threats into greater readiness and more effective defensive power. We are focused on our goals with new technologies,” he said.
The minister added, “We eat dirt, but we don’t give an inch of soil.”
He also said the White House had shown no willingness to reach an understanding and that there was little reason to expect progress at present.
