Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, Esmaeil Baqaei said Iran remains focused on its own efforts and capabilities, adding that Tehran’s use of diplomatic channels should not be interpreted as placing its hopes in any other side.
“We will not leave any military attack or aggression unanswered, and we have proven this in practice,” he stated.
Commenting on US claims regarding negotiations, Baqaei said Iran is not concerned with internal disputes among American officials, but argued that Washington has stripped diplomacy of its meaning.
He said diplomacy is supposed to serve as a means of preventing tensions, whereas the US has used it as a tool for setting ambushes and launching surprise attacks.
“The world views US diplomatic claims with suspicion,” Baqaei said, adding that Iran, given its bitter experience of dealing with Washington, is particularly obliged to take past events into account.
Addressing disruptions to flights in the US, Baqaei said American officials have attributed the problems to the outdated condition of equipment and infrastructure.
He said the American public would naturally ask whether it would have been better for the government to modernize its navigation systems rather than spend money on purchasing weapons and killing people in Iran.
Baqaei further lashed out at US officials for showing little concern for their own citizens, saying their main preoccupation is supporting the Zionist regime which has done nothing in the region but engage in killing.
His remarks came amid repeated warnings by senior Iranian military commanders that any renewed aggression against the country would draw a forceful response.
On Friday, Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Ahmad Vahidi warned that even the slightest aggression against Iran would be met with “devastating and painful” strikes, urging the adversaries to learn from their repeated defeats.
Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Ali Abdollahi has also said Iran’s previous retaliatory strikes were only the beginning, stressing that the country has the capabilities to deliver much more devastating blows in the event of renewed aggression.