The commander-in-chief of the Iranian army warned the U.S. and Israel of an unprecedented response if they opt to strike Iran.
U.S. President Donald Trump has positioned what he calls an “armada” of military assets in the Middle East, poised to take action against Iran if the current negotiations do not produce a deal, particularly on the nuclear issue.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is heading to Washington this week to meet with Trump and make the case for maximizing American demands of Iran, including limiting its ballistic missile capabilities and funding of militant proxies in the region, if Tehran wants to avert strikes.
“I am very hopeful that, God willing, with complete co-ordination we will be able to fully defend the rights of the Iranian people,” Major General Amir Hatami said in a video statement on Tuesday, originally in Farsi, alongside Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is leading the talks with the U.S.
Hatami said defense and diplomacy are “one and the same issue, being implemented well in a single arena against a hostile enemy that is trying to affect the interests of the Iranian nation.”
“We, as the Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, are in full readiness, and we know that this enemy understands nothing except the language of power. They learned this in the 33-day war, and today we are at a higher level of defensive readiness,” Hatami said.
“And if they make a mistake, they will certainly receive a response such as they have neither seen nor experienced up to now.”
The “33-day war” is a reference to the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group in Lebanon.
Israel and Iran also fought a direct 12-day war in 2025, during which Iranian air defenses were seriously degraded and swathes of its military and intelligence elite were killed. The U.S. also joined the war by bombing Iran’s nuclear sites.
On Friday, the U.S. and Iran held indirect talks in Muscat, Oman. Iran described it as a “very good start”.
Araghchi said at the close of negotiations that the talks had been positive, and focused “solely” on nuclear negotiations. “We did not discuss any other topics with the Americans.”
He added that the talks would continue at an unspecified time. Speaking to Iran’s state news agency IRNA, he said: “If this process continues, I think we will reach a good framework for an understanding.”
On Monday, Araghchi said Tehran is “completely serious” about the negotiations with the Trump administration, but blamed the U.S. for a “very large wall of distrust” between the two sides.
In Oman, Araghchi was present for Iran, and the U.S. was represented by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. For the first time, America also brought its top military commander in the Middle East to the table at the talks in Muscat, the Omani capital.
The presence of U.S. Navy Admiral Brad Cooper, head of the military’s Central Command (CENTCOM), in his dress uniform, served as a reminder that the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and other warships were now off the coast of Iran in the Arabian Sea.
Trump said the U.S. had “very good” talks on Iran and said more were planned for early this week. But he kept up the pressure, warning that if the country didn’t make a deal over its nuclear program, “the consequences are very steep.”
“Iran looks like they want to make a deal very badly—as they should,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he headed to his Florida golf club late Friday. He suggested Iran was willing to “do more” than in previous talks but did not give details.
Asked how long he was willing to wait for a deal, Trump said: “We have plenty of time. If you remember Venezuela, we waited around for a while. We’re in no rush.”
The Trump administration built up a huge military presence in the Caribbean Sea in the months before a U.S. raid captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January.
Trump had first put Iran on notice of military action over the Islamic regime’s brutal crackdown on mass protests in the country that were sparked by economic strife, which killed tens of thousands of people.
He has since broadened his goals from saving the lives of protesters to seriously limiting Iran’s nuclear capabilities, restricting its missiles, and cutting off its support for militant groups in the region, such as Hezbollah and the Houthis.
Iran denies seeking to build a nuclear bomb and says its nuclear program is for civilian energy purposes. But it has stockpiles of uranium enriched to a level beyond what is needed for nuclear energy. Tehran has said its ability to enrich uranium is a red line in the negotiations.
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
This article includes reporting by The Associated Press.
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