عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Top Khamenei Aide Rules Out Military Strike Against Iran

Former Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Yahya Rahim-Safavi (Reuters)
Former Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Yahya Rahim-Safavi (Reuters)
TT
TT

Top Khamenei Aide Rules Out Military Strike Against Iran

Former Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Yahya Rahim-Safavi (Reuters)
Former Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Yahya Rahim-Safavi (Reuters)

The top aide of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Rahim Safavi, downplayed the possibility of Iran being attacked by international powers days after the Israeli Prime Minister threatened to target Iranian nuclear sites.

Safavi said that Iran has grown too strong, and no power can attack it.

Speaking at the 40th anniversary of lifting the siege on the Abadan oil port, Safavi said: "Iran's defense power in the West Asian region is a great and influential power in the security defense equations."

"Both our nation and our armed forces have become so powerful that none of the trans-regional powers, such as the United States, can take any action against this power that would lead to a massive military attack on Iran," he underscored.

Safavi noted that the situation in Iran is different from that in Afghanistan and Iraq.

However, he called on the Iranian armed forces to always be prepared and never to underestimate the trans-regional enemies.

He hoped that "sustainable security" in Iran would create a suitable environment that leads to development and progress, solving local issues and reaching "required and better" conditions.

On Tuesday night, the Iranian television broadcast a 5-minute tv report entitled: "Death with a Thousand Knives" about neutralizing a terrorist cell carrying out subversive acts in favor of Israel without providing details about the identity of the group's members.

The report indicated that members of the cell were arrested, and Iranian security services killed the leader.

Meanwhile, speaking at the UN General Assembly on Monday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett threatened military action against Iran's nuclear facilities to prevent it from developing weapons.

Iran has "made a major leap forward" in nuclear research and development, production capacity, and uranium enrichment, he said, adding that the country is "violating" safeguard agreements with the IAEA, "and it's getting away with it."

"Iran's nuclear program has hit a watershed moment, and so has our tolerance. Words do not stop centrifuges from spinning," Bennett told fellow leaders, asserting that "Israel will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon."

According to Axios website, Israeli National Security Adviser Eyal Hulata will travel to Washington next week for talks on Iran with his White House counterpart Jake Sullivan.

Axios quoted two Israeli officials saying that Bennett doesn't think Israel needs to change its "nuclear ambiguity" policy for now due to Iran's latest nuclear advances.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Iranian Calls to Confront Geopolitical Shifts in the South Caucasus

A photo of a previous meeting of the 3+3 group on the South Caucasus in Tehran (archive - Iranian Foreign Ministry)
A photo of a previous meeting of the 3+3 group on the South Caucasus in Tehran (archive - Iranian Foreign Ministry)
TT
TT

Iranian Calls to Confront Geopolitical Shifts in the South Caucasus

A photo of a previous meeting of the 3+3 group on the South Caucasus in Tehran (archive - Iranian Foreign Ministry)
A photo of a previous meeting of the 3+3 group on the South Caucasus in Tehran (archive - Iranian Foreign Ministry)

Tension between Iran and Russia is mounting over the Zangezur Corridor in the South Caucasus, with both reformist and conservative politicians in Tehran suggesting that Moscow is deliberately hindering the revival of the nuclear deal with the West.
The controversy began when Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov urged the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia, specifically the provision to open the Zangezur Corridor, which would connect mainland Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared this a “red line” that cannot be crossed.
Disrupting Strategic Trade Routes

Tehran argues that the opening of the Zangezur Corridor would sever a vital trade route linking Iran to Europe. Former Iranian MP Ali Motahari criticized Russia’s focus on the Ukraine war, saying it is disregarding Iranian interests.
Iranian MP Ahmad Naderi voiced his frustration, arguing that Iran’s previous lack of response to Russian actions undermining its national interests has only emboldened Moscow. In a post on X, Naderi stressed that Moscow must understand that strategic cooperation does not equate to compromising national interests, and called on Iran’s Foreign Ministry and military to develop a clear plan to counteract Russia’s “geopolitical ambitions.”
Russian Ambassador to Tehran Alexey Dedov was summoned to Iran’s Foreign Ministry, where he was reminded of Iran’s opposition to any changes in the geopolitical landscape of the Caucasus. This move reflects the ongoing divergence in Moscow and Tehran’s positions on regional dynamics, especially after Russia reaffirmed its commitment to opening the corridor.
Russia and the Nuclear Deal
While the surface-level dispute over the Zangezur Corridor appears to be about trade routes, some Iranian politicians believe it has deeper implications, connected to Russia’s efforts to thwart Iran’s diplomatic engagement with the West and hinder the revival of the nuclear deal.
Former MP Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, who once chaired Iran’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin is launching a “preemptive strike” to prevent any potential rapprochement between Tehran and Washington.
Falahatpisheh, in comments published by reformist media, argued that Russia is using the Zangezur Corridor as leverage to exert pressure on Tehran, ignoring Iran’s “red lines” in regional politics. He claimed that Moscow prefers an isolated Iran, viewing any reduction in tensions between Tehran and the West as a threat to its own interests.
He also argued that Iran has had to make significant concessions to Russia, with the nuclear deal becoming a casualty of the ongoing Ukraine conflict. Iran had reportedly supplied Russia with hundreds of drones during the two-and-a-half-year war, and the potential transfer of ballistic missiles is viewed as a deeply concerning escalation by some insiders.
No Secret Nuclear Program

 

In parallel, Mohammad Eslami, the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, denied allegations of a secret nuclear program.
“For the past two decades, the West has used various tactics to pressure the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) into investigating Iran,” Tasnim news agency quoted him as saying.
Eslami reiterated that Iran had agreed to limit its uranium enrichment under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and placed its nuclear activities under strict oversight, with the goal of resolving any concerns about a potential nuclear weapons program. Despite this, he noted that the US unilaterally withdrew from the agreement, even though Iran had adhered to its commitments.
Eslami further criticized the three European signatories of the JCPOA—France, the United Kingdom, and Germany—along with the US, accusing them of spearheading a campaign against Iran’s nuclear program.