Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has issued a warning to the world: “any level or type of threat must be met with an immediate, impactful and geographically unrestricted response.”
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Khamenei’s threat comes as urgent diplomatic efforts continue to avert another all-out war in Iran, which would have devastating consequences for the Middle East and beyond, as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that Tehran hopes “there is rationality on the other side to prefer diplomacy over other paths” because “building on the experiences of the last two wars, we are much stronger than before.”
The Supreme Leader met with Iran’s top military commanders on Saturday, presenting them with guidelines to prepare for possible new US-Israeli military action, according to the official IRNA news agency.
It follows U.S. warnings that its forces could wage a short but intensive military campaign against Iran after the U.S. midterm elections next week.
The threat of a “geographically unrestricted response” means Iran could seek to target Europe as well as Turkey and the South Caucasus in response to a new attack.
The description of “any level or type of threat” could indicate that Iran could act preemptively, ahead of a US-Israeli military strike.
State media said Khamenei – who has not been seen publicly since the war in Iran began with US and Israeli strikes in late February – also requested an updated list of potential US and Israeli targets, to include “all kinds of physical and non-physical assets”.
Khamenei also said Iran would decide the duration of any new war.
“If Iran’s enemies resume their military or terrorist attacks, it will be the armed forces of the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation that will determine when and under what conditions these attacks end,” he said.
Iranian state media reported that in a meeting on Saturday, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), General Ahmad Vahidi, along with the commander of the Iranian army and his chief of staff, briefed the supreme leader on Iran’s military preparedness and told him that Iran’s weapons production had increased “seven-fold.”
Commanders report directly to Khamenei and have previously ignored Iran’s civilian leadership, fueling constant speculation about who makes decisions in Tehran.
Tehran’s threats were reiterated on Sunday by Iranian military spokesman Mohammad Akraminia, who told Iranian state media that “if a new war breaks out, the geography of the conflict would not be limited to the West Asian region,” and that “any potential future war could prove much longer than past conflicts.”
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington-based think tank, said Khamenei’s threats were “likely part of an Iranian effort to deter the United States and Israel from striking Iran.”
Gulf countries remain “prepared for the worst”
As multiple speculations swirl in the Gulf about the imminence of a new war versus the state of negotiations, with purported lists of demands from both sides circulating in the media or whether or not American negotiators will meet directly with Iranian negotiators, Gulf countries are bearing the brunt of a months-long state of war, with serious consequences for their economies.
While the United States and Iran have repeatedly pushed their previous standoffs to the limit in their attempt to pressure each other for concessions, Gulf countries continue to hope that any last-minute diplomatic breakthrough could lead to a peaceful resolution and avoid a new round of war, especially after the United States warned Gulf countries that it could launch a new attack on Iran.
UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash told a conference in Bahrain on Sunday that Gulf states remain “prepared for the worst”, while hoping that mediation efforts, also led by Qatar, will prevail.
He warned that the Gulf was stuck in a prolonged state of “no war, no peace” and that if Washington and Tehran’s “positions are not brought together, then we will have to worry about the worst.”
The UAE diplomat also denounced the Gulf countries’ lack of unity in action as a bloc, saying “we have not collectively risen to the challenge” and that rebuilding trust with Iran would take “an extremely long time.”
Iran recognizes Washington’s “positive measures”
As Tehran continues its threats and defiant rhetoric, its foreign minister and security chief have signaled positive steps in their negotiations brokered with the United States through Qatar.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced Saturday evening that Tehran could agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in just two days, instead of the previous deadline of seven days.
He said Iranian diplomats were in Qatar for negotiations after a Qatari delegation mediated in Tehran in recent days.
Araghchi proposed last month to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within a week if the United States agreed to lift the blockade of Iranian ports, release frozen Iranian assets and lift sanctions on Iranian oil sales, among other conditions. This was rejected.
In an interview with Qatari television channel Al Jazeera, Araghchi said Iran had no plans to meet with U.S. officials, but called recent U.S. efforts toward “broader dialogue” a positive step.
Araghchi said a decision on whether negotiations would be direct or indirect would be made “once Washington accepts Iran’s terms.”
This comes as the head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Major General Mohsen Rezaei, said he had received a letter from US Vice President JD Vance proposing negotiations.
Commenting on the letter, Rezaei said “the tone has completely changed” and called it a “very good sign.” Araghchi also called Washington’s attempt to open dialogue a “positive step.”
Rezaei highlighted a significant change in one of the conditions imposed by Iran: ships in a reopened Strait of Hormuz would take a route agreed by Iran and Oman. And “anyone passing through this waterway will do so under Iranian leadership.”
He said Iran was now awaiting the latest US response. Furthermore, Rezaei warned on X that any attack would bring “devastating blows to the aggressor using new weapons.”
Rezaei, who state media reported met with Iran’s supreme leader last week, also said there had been no decision to change Iran’s nuclear doctrine, but he noted that some Iranians questioned whether it would need to be rethought if Iran was attacked again.
Separately, Qatar on Sunday condemned Friday’s attack on one of its LNG tankers in the Gulf, which was hit by “unidentified objects”, calling it a “dangerous act that threatens the safety of maritime navigation and the security of global energy supplies”.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs denounced in a statement “these reckless and irresponsible practices”, warning of “the serious repercussions which could result for the security and stability of the region and the global economy”.
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