'Action Against Iran Has a Cost': Tehran Issues Stern Warning to US
Iran's Mohsen Rezaei warns the US of severe costs and global energy chaos if conflict continues, as IRGC Navy threatens US regional bases.
In a high-stakes escalation of rhetoric, Mohsen Rezaei, the Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, has issued a stark warning to the United States, asserting that any military action against Tehran will come with a heavy price. Speaking via the Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, Rezaei emphasized that while Iran favors diplomacy, it possesses the strategic capabilities to sustain a prolonged response if the conflict intensifies.
Diplomacy vs. Confrontation
Rezaei made it clear that Tehran's preference remains a diplomatic resolution, provided there is a mutual understanding of the dire consequences that military aggression would trigger. However, he cautioned that the nation is fully prepared for further confrontation.
"Everyone should know that action against Iran has a cost. If diplomacy can create this understanding, we prefer diplomacy; but if the war continues, Iran has the necessary tools to continue responding," Rezaei stated.
The Secretary further revealed that Iran has not yet revealed its full military arsenal. He claimed that previous stages of the conflict only utilized a fraction of their capabilities, and Tehran is ready to scale its operations in direct proportion to the intensity of the war.
Global Energy and Regional Shifts
Beyond the immediate military threat, Rezaei warned of a looming economic crisis. He suggested that a continuation of the current hostilities would lead to strategic instability in global energy markets, predicting that oil markets would remain volatile and unsettled for at least the next three years.
Interestingly, Rezaei claimed that the ongoing tension has actually shifted regional dynamics in Iran's favor. He asserted that Gulf states are currently redefining their relationships with Tehran, having begun to doubt the United States' ability to protect its own military installations, let alone the sovereign territories of its allies in the region.
IRGC Navy Threatens US Bases
Adding to the tension, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy has issued its own warning to Washington. The IRGC accused the US of encouraging vessels to navigate through maritime passages that are mined, leading to an increase in accidents.
The IRGC Navy Command warned that if the US continues to incite ships to use these "illegally mined" routes, the scope of the confrontation will expand to include US military bases located within the region, describing the alert as a "serious warning."
This statement follows claims by the IRGC Navy that it successfully struck and set fire to four oil cargo ships in the northern Persian Gulf. Additionally, three other vessels reportedly collided with mines in the western Strait of Hormuz. The IRGC maintained that these ships had ignored warnings and crossed an "illegal route."
Trump's Stance on Negotiations
These warnings come amidst ambiguous signals from the United States. In a recent interview with NewsNation, US President Donald Trump indicated that the US is not currently negotiating with Iran. When questioned about the status of talks with Tehran, Trump suggested that while there might be some activity, the outcome is uncertain, cryptically noting that "something" will happen "fairly soon."