Iran warned on Sunday that any renewed war with the United States could last longer than the previous round of fighting, after President Donald Trump said he still had to “take care” of more targets.
Axios quoted one US and one Israeli official saying the two leaders discussed the state of negotiations with the Islamic republic, with Netanyahu pressing the president to strike Iran immediately after Tuesday’s US midterm elections and Trump eager to let negotiations play out.
“A potential future war could last longer than previous conflict, and the American president would not be in a position to dictate the timing or the conditions of its conclusion,” said army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia, according to Iranian state television. The Israeli source described the call as “tough”, while the US source said it was “direct”, according to Axios. “In a conflict with America, there are no geographical limitations; a vast theatre has been defined for inflicting damage upon the enemy,” Mohebbi said, according to state television. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: “We hope the other side will exercise rationality and choose diplomacy,” adding that Iran “remains prepared for both defence and diplomacy”, according to the official IRNA news agency.
US media reported that Trump had held a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday over whether and when to ramp up combat operations against Iran. Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the Emirati president, said on Sunday that the United Arab Emirates hoped the exchanges would yield a breakthrough but was preparing for the worst.
