Mohsen Rezaei warned that ceasefire negotiations could last 30-40 years

Iran’s top security official, who reportedly received a letter from Vice President JD Vance regarding the resumption of peace talks, warned in a resurfaced interview that war negotiations with Tehran could drag on for decades during which both sides should “be ready to fight.”

Mohsen Rezaei, former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), is now secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and acts as a key aide to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. He also helped shape Tehran’s military strategy during the Iran-Iraq War from 1980 to 1988.

The eight-year conflict ended after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran’s then-supreme leader, agreed to a U.N.-brokered ceasefire, which he likened to drinking from a “poisoned chalice.”

JD VANCE RETURNS TO WASHINGTON AFTER 16 HOURS OF IRAN PEACE TALKS COLLAPSE IN PAKISTAN

Iranian General Mohsen Rezaei issues direct threat to President Donald Trump as the United States repositions its aircraft carrier amid growing tensions with Tehran, according to reports. (Ayoub Ghaderi/YJC/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS)

“A ceasefire means an unfinished war,” Rezaei said of the war in a 2006 interview with the Iranian publication Baztab. An English translation of the interview is held by the National Security Archives at George Washington University.

Asked if the two sides would stand their ground and begin negotiations, Rezaei replied: “Yes. Negotiations may take 30 to 40 years and during this time Iran and Iraq should be ready to fight.”

Two decades after suggesting negotiations could drag on for years, Washington has reportedly sought to negotiate with Rezaei, a key player in Iran’s current military leadership.

Vance sent him a letter proposing the resumption of U.S.-Iran peace talks in October, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Iran said it had received a letter from Vance but had not responded to it, according to Iranian state media. The semi-official Tasnim news agency said Iran expected the United States to comply with its terms, warning that “any position that contradicts this framework is unacceptable.”

Trump says Iran deal ‘extensively negotiated’ as 84-day war nears possible end

In June, President Donald Trump posted a warning on Truth Social that Iran had taken too long to reach an agreement and would “pay the price”, while on Monday he also said Iran wanted a deal but warned that another US strike could be around five times larger than the last.

“We could eliminate it quickly, or we could eliminate it over a short period of time, but not a long period of time,” Trump said in an interview with C-SPAN on “Washington Journal Primetime.”

“I can tell you that Iran would like to make a deal, and we’ll see if that happens,” Trump said of the current timeline.

Rezaei, however, continued to maintain a defiant stance toward Washington, writing on

“FOLD YOUR HAND. STOP making FAKE NEWS about imaginary discussions.

“Stop denying the NEW West Asian ORDER. It is time to surrender to the seven conditions that Iran has repeatedly stated,” he said.

After the November 3 US midterm elections, Rezaei also claimed that Iran had defeated Washington militarily and politically.

He warned of a “devastating response” to another attack and said it was time for Washington to “surrender.”

RUBIO DEFENDS TRUMP’S IRAN WAR AS NOT “NECESSARILY POPULAR, BUT NECESSARY”

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) generals and commanders Mohsen Rezaei (2nd left), Ali Fadavi (3rd left), Ahmad Vahidi (2nd right) and Hassan Hassanzadeh (right) attend a memorial ceremony for IRGC commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians killed in the Iran-Israel war at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosque in downtown Tehran, Iran on 2 July 2025. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Rezaei also dismissed reports of ongoing negotiations between the United States and Iran or any planned meetings in Qatar, accusing Washington of spreading false statements aimed at easing economic pressure and lowering oil prices. He reiterated that Tehran would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until its seven conditions were met.

Rezaei spent more than four decades within Iran’s defense establishment. He commanded the IRGC from 1981 to 1997, overseeing operations during the Iran-Iraq War.

In Baztab’s 2006 interview, Rezaei also detailed how Iranian leaders distinguished their public rhetoric from military strategy.

Although Khomeini and other Iranian officials called for “fighting until Saddam is toppled” and “until nuisances are eradicated,” Rezaei said Tehran’s real strategy was to “fight until victory.”

At the time, Iran’s gains on the battlefield, he suggested, were aimed at strengthening Tehran’s negotiating position rather than achieving total conquest.

Iran promises ‘astonishing’ strikes, raises missile range limit as US targets land routes

Commanders and members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps meet with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, Iran, August 17, 2023. (Office of the Supreme Leader of Iran/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Reuters)

“The world did not pay attention to the slogans,” Rezaei said in the interview, adding that foreign governments and intelligence agencies focused on the actions and diplomatic positions of Iranian leaders.

Rezaei also said Iran had struggled to turn battlefield gains into diplomatic victories because it lacked international alliances and influence at the United Nations.

Rezaei has since been the subject of US sanctions and international surveillance. The Trump administration first sanctioned him on January 10, 2020, under an executive order targeting senior Iranian officials appointed by the Supreme Leader.

Rezaei had also been accused of involvement in the July 1994 bombing of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, which killed 85 people.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Interpol approved an Argentine request for a red notice against Rezaei in 2007 in connection with the bombing.