Khamenei said a U.S. attack would not remain a limited conflict, stressing, “If the U.S. starts a war, this time it will be a regional war.”
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader, has warned that any military action by the United States against Iran could spiral into a wider regional confrontation.
Khamenei issued the warning amid sharply escalating tensions between Tehran and Western powers, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.
Speaking on Sunday, Khamenei said a U.S. attack would not remain a limited conflict, stressing, “If the U.S. starts a war, this time it will be a regional war.”
He insisted that Tehran had no intention of initiating hostilities but would respond decisively if provoked.
“We are not the instigators, and we do not seek to attack any country. But the Iranian nation will deliver a firm blow to anyone who attacks or harasses it,” the 86-year-old leader added, according to AFP.
The remarks mark Khamenei’s most explicit warning to Washington so far and come as Iran’s parliament announced retaliatory measures against Europe.
Earlier on Sunday, Iranian lawmakers said Iran now considers all European Union militaries to be “terrorist groups,” following an EU agreement last week to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation.
Iranian officials have sought to balance the tough rhetoric with assurances that Tehran does not want a direct confrontation.
President Masoud Pezeshkian told Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in a phone call on Saturday that Iran was not seeking conflict with the United States, according to a statement from the Iranian presidency.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has never sought, and in no way seeks, war, and it is firmly convinced that a war would be in the interest of neither Iran, nor the United States, nor the region,” Pezeshkian said.
Al-Sisi, a key U.S. ally, has reportedly been invited to join U.S. President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace.”
Despite the diplomatic messaging, President Trump has indicated that military options remain on the table, even as he suggested talks were underway.
“(Iran is) talking to us, and we’ll see if we can do something, otherwise we’ll see what happens… We have a big fleet heading out there,” Trump told Fox News. “They are negotiating,” he added.
Trump also said US allies in the region were not being briefed on any potential strike plans for security reasons.
“Well, we can’t tell them the plan. If I told them the plan, it would be almost as bad as telling you the plan; it could be worse, actually,” he said.
Washington has already deployed a naval strike group led by the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier near Iran’s shores, heightening concerns of a possible military escalation.
Meanwhile, Tehran has hinted that diplomatic channels remain open.
Ali Larijani, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said there had been movement toward talks with Washington.
“Contrary to the hype of the contrived media war, structural arrangements for negotiations are progressing,” Larijani said.
His comments came a day after the Kremlin confirmed that Larijani had held discussions in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin, underscoring the growing international dimension of the standoff.