Enemies are unlikely to attack Iran, especially on the ground, the military chief predicted on Saturday, saying even “unwise” leaders in the West know that any such conflict would entail huge costs for them. US President Donald Trump, adopting an aggressive posture toward Iran after its test launch of a ballistic missile, said in February that “nothing is off the table” in dealing with Tehran, and the White House said it was putting Iran “on notice”.
“In the remote case of an aggression, this won’t be on the ground because they would face brave warriors,” Chairman of the General Staff of Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Baqeri said, Reuters reported, citing Tasnim News Agency.
“Thank God, even the unwise who lead world arrogance [the West] ... can conclude that attacking the Islamic Republic would give rise to heavy costs,” Baqeri said at an air defense exhibition.
“Even if they would control the start of an aggression, they would not have a say about its end and they won’t even be able to limit the war to Iran’s borders.”
The United States imposed unilateral sanctions against Iran last month after claiming that the ballistic missile tests violated a UN resolution, which endorsed a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers to lift sanctions. The resolution called upon Tehran not to undertake activities related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such technology. It stopped short of explicitly barring such activity.
Iran denies its missile development breaches the resolution, saying its missiles are not designed to carry nuclear weapons.
