The Iranian government spokesman says a war between Tehran and Washington is very unlikely, but the Islamic Republic will firmly safeguard its interests should the U.S. make a mistake and wage a war against Iran, Iran Front Page reports.
Ali Rabiei noted Washington is unlikely to make any miscalculations about this.
“I think the U.S. won’t have any miscalculations. We have told the U.S. and everybody else clearly that we won’t start any war, directly or indirectly, but if the U.S. makes a grave mistake, we will powerfully defend our security and vital interests,” he said.
“I believe the U.S. is highly unlikely to come up with any miscalculations about Iran’s firm intentions as well as deterrence and revenge capability,” the spokesman added.
“So, we are unlikely to see new tensions aimed at triggering a fresh war in the region,” he said.
Rabiei underlined that the United States, even in the past, was aware of Iran’s capabilities and, hence, did not make the mistake of waging a war.
“The U.S. used to have such intentions and would put such options on the table before, but Iran’s firm intentions and deterrence capability made them not come up with any miscalculations over these years,” he said.
The spokesman said the rumors of war are spread by those who cash in on the brouhaha by media over the issue.
“Such rumors have their roots in the pretentious behavior of, and the psychological warfare launched against Iran and other peoples in the region by those who benefit from the media fuss over these rumors,” said Rabiei.
“This issue is nothing new. We have, for years, been witnessing this phenomenon with varying intensity,” he added.
The spokesman underscored that Iran will continue to keep a close watch on U.S. movements in the region irrespective of rumors.
“I repeat that we keep closely monitoring all of the United States’ military movements in the region regardless of rumors of a war. And we don’t see these rumors as a source of concern for us given our deterrence capability,” he emphasized.
Meanwhile, he said there is no denying that there are some people in the United States who favor “military adventurism.”
“There are some in the United States who are interested in military adventurism in order to deflect the American public’s attention from domestic issues in the country and election defeats. We cannot deny that and we have evidence in that regard,” he explained.