Iran signals: “If war breaks out – it will be regional”

Vigilance for the negotiation talks between the US and Iran that are expected to open tomorrow (Friday). In Iran, preparations are being made for the limited round of talks, which will be held in Oman and not in Turkey – and without the countries that intended to join according to the initial plan. Iran threatens: “We are ready for any possibility, that Trump will choose between compromise and war.”

• A spokesman for the Iranian army: “We announced that we are ready to deal with any option and any scenario that the enemy is considering, and if the enemy chooses the option of war – we are ready for any option under conditions of war. The US president is the one who has to choose between compromise and war, the armed forces are ready for both options.”
• “If war breaks out, its scope will include the entire geography of the region and all American bases. From Israel to the Persian Gulf and the Sea of ​​Oman, our access to American bases is easy. This has been our message and we have announced it many times. Now we firmly announce that we are fully prepared to defend the country.”
• Ali Akbar and Laiti, Khamenei’s senior adviser, wrote in a letter to Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Kassem after the death of Hassan Nasrallah’s father: “Iran, as the pillar of the resistance, is fully prepared to stand against any external threat and enemy, especially against the United States and its evil affiliate, the Zionist regime. Surely the victory will be of the resistance front.”

• Azatullah Zara’ami, the former chairman of the Iranian Broadcasting Authority and a former minister identified with the conservative camp in Iran, sent a threat against the US: “The only thing that came to their mind is to play with their aircraft carriers, move them from place to place and bring them from one point to another. I am sure that the Strait of Hormuz will be their place of slaughter, will be their hell. Iran will prove that the Strait of Hormuz belongs to Iran throughout history. All targets Theirs are within our range and accessibility.”
• “Our missiles, our UAVs, our navy – they are all very capable. Our armed forces are professional, efficient and ready to respond to any threatening American step, even the smallest. Therefore, the last step they took will surely get a reaction.”
• The Iranian news agency Noor News published an article this morning under the title: “Why does Trump shake his chair before he sits down at the table?”. The article claims that “Donald Trump sees negotiations not as a diplomatic process, but as a stage for a display of power. An approach that originates from the book ‘The Art of the Deal’. According to this logic, threats, exaggerations and creating mental pressure before the conversation are part of the negotiations themselves, not a separate introduction.”

• The Iranian political commentator and member of the government information council, Shams al-Wazin, told the Iranian news agency Isna: “Iran’s hand is on the trigger during the negotiations. Some believe that the US may repeat its previous action during the negotiations, but it must be said that this time Iran is even more prepared in the military field than in the diplomatic field.”
• “When the US sets a specific principle for itself in the Trump era, which is peace through force, it is natural that it will do so through military campaigns and boasting. If it takes military action against Iran, then Iran will make the war regional. I think this is the time when America will regret it, because Iran will allow the war to spread to the whole region, and especially to all the American bases. On the other hand, Israel will also be in this war, as has been said in the past, and the capability of its air force will be used.”
• Referring to the negotiations scheduled to take place tomorrow, he said: “America tightens its terms within 48 hours of the start of the negotiations and actually seeks to satisfy Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel. This is quite clear from America’s recent actions.”
• Regarding the location of the negotiations, he said: “Most of the negotiations were held in Oman. Turkey (compared to Oman) is somewhat distant from the developments in the region and its challenges. Turkey can be seen as a representative of continental Europe in a certain sense. On the other hand, Oman has a longer history of hosting negotiations, and Iran actually wants to resume the negotiations from where they were interrupted.”
• On the subject of the negotiations, he noted: “Iran has emphasized that it will only negotiate on one subject, and that is the nuclear issue and all issues related to it. But, when Iran emphasizes that it will only negotiate on the nuclear issue, it is actually emphasizing that if any issue deviates from this plan, it will withdraw from the negotiations.”
• “The US is trying to raise the ceiling of the demands in the last hours before the negotiations, just as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised a new condition regarding Iran’s missile capabilities. The Americans also raised another condition, which is activity related to space and satellites. The US believes this will increase Iran’s intercontinental ballistic missile capability, so it believes it must stop this Iranian capability now.”

• Iranian sources told the Lebanese Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, this morning: “Iran has more confidence in the role played by the Sultanate of Oman as a mediator. Muscat provides a more comfortable environment for holding sensitive and secret negotiations, away from the propaganda and media pressure that could be used to exert political pressure on Iran or influence the course and agenda of the negotiations.”

• They noted that “this approach does not mean ignoring other regional efforts, including those undertaken by Turkey, which Iran considers important in the context of reducing tensions and creating a favorable political climate.”
• However, according to them, Tehran “is not enthusiastic about turning the negotiations with Washington into something resembling an extensive regional meeting”, believing that expanding this framework “could turn the negotiations into a mere political show and negatively affect the atmosphere in it, the nature of the issues being discussed and the priorities”.