TEHRAN -- Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Monday Tehran is in a state of war and will not hesitate to exercise its inherent right to self-defense, while dismissing Israeli electoral politics as a competition among factions to commit greater crimes.
Speaking at his weekly news briefing here, Baghaei said the Islamic Republic is closely monitoring regional developments regardless of Israeli rhetoric.
“I don’t think there is an election there; it is a competition between different gangs to commit more evil,” he said. “The race is between different individuals whose slogan is that ‘I can commit more crime and killing’.”
He added: “It makes no difference to us who takes the helm of a regime that has no record but violence and killing. The genocide of Palestinians has continued, but such threats out of desperation are part of this regime’s nature.
“We monitor developments carefully, and our armed forces have not the slightest doubt in defending Iran. We are in a state of war and will certainly not hesitate in exercising our inherent right to defense.”
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s threat to destroy the Islamic Republic drew a Persian proverb from the spokesman: “Let him who puffs burn his own beard.”
Such futile bragging, he said, is a sign of desperation and serves only to discredit them, while Iran regards the Israeli regime as a warmongering one whose members are united in evil and seek to destabilize the region.
On the diplomatic front, Baghaei said Washington has shown it is not serious about negotiations, treating talks as dictation.
Less than half an hour before missiles struck Iran, the U.S. president had said the entire administration was ready to negotiate, he noted, asking: “Do you see any goodwill? We have never closed the diplomatic window.”
He pointed to the 2015 nuclear deal, which Iran fully implemented
while the U.S. withdrew, and to the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed by Trump himself that lasted less than three weeks.
“Can you find a country more responsible than Iran, which still has not closed the diplomatic window?” he said. “Those who fear diplomacy lack logic, but the other side has not yet concluded that when it speaks of diplomacy it must adhere to its requirements. Iran is serious in diplomacy just as it is serious in defending itself.”
Asked how Iran might respond to future military aggression, Baghaei said it is not his place to say and that such matters will not be broadcast in advance.
“The armed forces will show how they surprise the enemy,” he said, adding that past experience will inform policy and that Iran always abides by international law and has consistently observed humanitarian law, unlike other parties.
He stressed that what matters is securing Iran’s interests and that diplomacy will not be halted for a single factor, with decisions made by consensus.
On the global oil price surge and maritime security disruptions, he blamed aggressive actions, the destabilization of the Strait of Hormuz and the extra-governmental and deviant behavior of the United States, saying Washington’s leaders, who previously admitted to pirate-like behavior in seizing ships, are today the main cause of pressure on the global economy and their own people.
Former U.S. President Barack Obama’s acknowledgement that Iran has never had a nuclear weapon drew a pointed response.
“This is a fact — Iran has never sought a nuclear weapon, and this is part of the reality of the past two decades,” Baghaei said, criticizing the U.S. for attributing a lie to Iran and using it as a basis for aggression.
“We tell the truth and the other side lies. We tell the truth that we do not seek a nuclear weapon, and they keep repeating a lie. Repetition of a lie should not obstruct the truth.”
He said he is not sure the EU has changed its approach and that it may be a political gesture, noting that Britain, France and Germany did not act constructively and did not even condemn the aggression against Iran in words, instead supporting or appeasing it.
“Europeans should take stock of their record over the past two years,” he said, citing their followership of the U.S. on snapback and their refusal to condemn aggression, and expressed hope they will view West Asia developments more realistically.
Iran summoned Italy’s ambassador the previous day to convey its concerns, after France’s ambassador had been summoned earlier, over the excessive use of force and restrictions on people’s rights in European countries, which he said are incompatible with those governments’ commitments.
Some attributed the problems to fuel, but if so, they must accept responsibility for their own actions, he said, adding that Europeans participated in insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf and that no answer has yet been given regarding NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s explicit admission of involvement in preparing a U.S. and Israeli attack on Iran.
Voicing solidarity with the Cuban people, Baghaei responded to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s call for regime change in Cuba.
He said Washington’s push is part of a broader “reactionary trend — a return to classic colonialism,” noting that during the peak era of regime-change operations, such efforts were conducted covertly, whereas now they are spoken of openly.
“Regime change is a code word for intervention,” he said, adding that if countries truly value the right to self-determination, they must take decisive action against this trend rather than remain silent.
He then drew a contrast with Iran’s own experience to underline the point about Cuba’s treatment: Cuba “has neither a nuclear program nor anything else, yet it has faced severe sanctions for seven decades” under an illegitimate U.S. blockade and embargo.