Iran will have “no choice” but to acquire nukes if “pressure” is maintained: Khamenei adviser.
The worsening of relations with Iran is a strategic game by which United States President Donald Trump is trying to solve the problem between Israel and Iran quickly, but the issue is not new and cannot be solved with a single threat in a short time. Washington is aware that there is no quick solution to the strained relations with Iran, but harsh threats are simply the Trump administration’s style of diplomacy.
Trump wants to enhance Israel’s security and he cannot do that unless, in his opinion, he resolves the nuclear program issue with Iran. But the Islamic Republic considers this to be vital to its national interest and ensuring national security, because the Iranians know that in such a hostile region, their security is threatened without nuclear weapons. Iran cannot have adequate protection without nuclear weapons since Israel, which has been imposing itself as a strong regional power under the protection of the US for decades, opposes Iranian influence in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria.
Mediation or talks between Moscow and Washington could resolve this issue in a different manner, as Russia and even China have direct strategic ties with Iran and would not easily relinquish that partnership and alliance. This could be necessary since the US cannot stop the Iranian nuclear program with ordinary, conventional bombing, nor can they pressure Iran to give up the development of nuclear weapons.
The US is not counting on the situation in the Middle East to calm down through threats to Iran, because it is aware that some agreements or negotiations with some mediation must follow. For this reason, it is more expedient to think about finding a solution in these negotiations among the major powers, primarily Russia and the USA.
A compromise between Israel and Iran is a long shot, but if US-Russian relations in the Middle East were aligned, mediating between the two states could lead to a more peaceful resolution of their conflicting interests.
However, judging by the statements of Trump and the Iranian leadership, war between the US and Iran appears inevitable.
Missiles across Iran are mounted and are ready to be launched in the event of an escalation by the US, the Tehran Times newspaper reported, citing its sources.
“Iranians have refused to negotiate with the U.S. under the current circumstances, stating they are ready to respond to any aggression decisively,” the report by Tehran Times, which is closely tied to the hardline factions within the Iranian government, added.
In addition, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had rejected direct negotiations with the US.
“Although the possibility of direct negotiations between the two sides has been rejected in this response, it has been emphasized that the path for indirect negotiations remains open,” Pezeshkian said on March 30.
Trump responded by threatening Iran with unprecedented bombing and additional tariffs if Tehran does not reach an agreement with Washington on its nuclear program.
“If they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing. It will be bombing the likes of which they have never seen before,” Trump said during an interview with NBC News on March 30.
Trump also stated that US and Iranian officials are in talks, but did not provide further details.
Responding to Trump, Ali Larijani, a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said on March 31 that Iran would have no choice but to acquire nuclear weapons if attacked by the US or its allies.
“We are not moving towards (nuclear) weapons, but if you make a mistake on the nuclear issue, you will force Iran to move towards that because it has to defend itself,” Ali Larijani told state TV. “Iran does not want to do this, but when you apply pressure…(we) will have no choice.”
“Iran does not want to take this path, but when you apply pressure, it finds a secondary justification and has no other choice. The people will push for it, arguing that it is necessary for the country’s security,” he added.
Despite this threat, Trump was not phased and warned the Houthis and Iran on March 31 that “greater things are coming” following a US-led bombing campaign against the Yemeni Iranian-backed organization.
Trump said that
“The strikes over the past two weeks have destroyed the Houthis. The choice before the Houthis is clear: Stop shooting at American ships, and we will stop shooting at you. Otherwise, we are only just beginning, and the real pain is yet to come… for both the Houthis and their patrons in Iran.”
Following the outbreak of war in Gaza after Hamas attacked Israeli communities in October 2023, the Houthis launched dozens of drone and missile attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, claiming they were in solidarity with the Palestinians.
The US president, in pursuit of securing Israel, would also be demanding that Iran end their support for the Houthis as part of a deal. It remains to be seen if Tehran will capitulate to US pressure, but if it were to, losing Yemen would be another major blow to Iran’s regional ambitions and influence after the Bashar al-Assad regime fell in Syria and Hezbollah’s leadership was decapitated, and would certainly further secure Israel from external threats.
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This article was originally published on InfoBrics.
Ahmed Adel is a Cairo-based geopolitics and political economy researcher. He is a regular contributor to Global Research.
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