Larijani: Iran Preparing A Response to Israel Aggression (Exclusive)

On October 1, Iran responded to the Israeli assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, Hezbollah Secretary General Seyed Hassan Nasrallah, and IRGC general Abbas Nilforoushan by launching as many as 200 ballistic missiles toward the Zionist regime’s military and intelligence bases all over the occupied Palestinian territories.

In the early hours of October 26, the Zionist regime attacked a number of military sites in Iran, which resulted in the martyrdom of four servicemen and a civilian.

Answering to a question about further confrontation between Iran and Israel following Israeli aggression and Iran’s possible measures to change Tel Aviv’s miscalculation and restore Iran’s deterrence, Ali Larijani said in an exclusive interview with Tasnim, "That (restoring deterrence) is a key issue. Relevant authorities are pursuing the issue carefully to ensure that Iran’s (future) response to Israel fulfill these specifications.”

“In general” he said “this is an issue that we should allow relevant military officials to take the right decision. I know that they are thinking about different ways to reach that (decision).”

Larijani meantime noted that the issue needs careful considerations and secrecy since it is related to Iran’s national security.

In remarks on October 27, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei had emphasized the necessity of disrupting the flawed calculations of the Zionist regime regarding Iran.

"They’re making a miscalculation with respect to Iran… our officials should be the ones to assess and precisely apprehend what needs to be done and do whatever is in the best interests of this country and nation. They (the enemy) must be made to realize who the Iranian people are and what the Iranian youth are like," the Leader added.

Responding to a question about his recent visit to Syria and Lebanon amid Israeli attacks against both countries, Larijani said he conveyed message of Ayatollah Khamenei to Syrian and Lebanese officials.

He said the message by Leader of the Islamic Revolution had important points for both countries given the current situation of the region, adding, “Overall, the spirit of both messages was relevant to today's circumstances. It emphasizes the same factors that led to success in previous periods should also be taken into consideration today.”

Larjani expressed the hope that the message would find its way given the interests shown by both countries.

Regarding a question about Israel’s US-backed plot to restore terrorist groups in southern Syria against the government of president Bashar al-Assad, Larijani said, “It is possible that they will do so, because the Hezbollah forces were able to practically repel the Israeli forces with their resistance; so they (Israelis) are not successful in Lebanon and therefore it is necessary for them to show misconducts elsewhere.”

He further noted that the issue is not hidden from the Syrian authorities, and added that "such measures are ineffective because their problems come from something else and they cannot reach their goal by relying on such plots."

When asked that the US, along with some groups in Lebanon, are assuming that Hezbollah is now very weak after the Israeli attacks, especially due to the martyrdom of Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah and Sayyid Hashem Safi al-Din and they can remove Hezbollah from Lebanon scene, Larijani said, “Such discussions are mostly related the first part of Lebanon's security developments, when it was believed that a heavy blow had been dealt to Hezbollah. But now the situation is different in the second phase of security developments.’

“Now, if someone looks at the situation on the ground carefully, they will see that Netanyahu is now confused in the political-security scene because he has been continuously pressing for about 40 days (militarily)… but when you look at the operation on the ground, you see that he cannot advance… Now the question arises: why did this happen?

The answer goes back to Hezbollah and how, after the blow it suffered, it came to its senses and replaced all of its commanders and forces who were martyred, he explained.

Larijani voiced confidence that Lebanese Hezbollah will be victorious in its war with Israel, saying, “Hezbollah has extraordinary capacity. With such a young people that I met in Lebanon, I became confident that by God's grace they will be victorious, because they have high morale, and morale is the main issue in war.”

Asked about possible direct talks between Iran and the US, Larijani said the two countries have maintained indirect dialogues even during the government of the martyred President Ebrahim Raisi.

As regards future talks, he noted, “But the time that negotiations should take place depends on our national interests. The relevant authorities may not consider it advisable now or may accept it under certain conditions at another time.”

“We have no reservations in expressing our views, because we have a logic, and we will negotiate where it is in line with our national interests. I remember once in Iraq, a request was made for us to negotiate (with the US). Our assessment (that time) was that negotiations would be in our interest there, because we wanted to make Iraq’s atmosphere calm, so we accepted negotiations.”

Asked about the IAEA’s resolution against Iran initiated by the EU3, Larijani said the Europeans have repeated the past mistakes.

He said while the Westerners mistakenly believed that Gaza and Hamas had been destroyed and Hezbollah had been eliminated, the tables were turned on them, so they repeated the previous mistakes and pushed for a resolution against Iran.

Larijani noted that Iran is currently enriching uranium at levels higher than 60% purity, while the US has failed to discourage Iran from manufacturing even a single centrifuge machine.

He said the West can adopt a rational approach and hold negotiations with Iran.

Pointing to the US’ withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Larijani said such withdrawal did not benefit the US and inflicted costs on Iran, which in turn stepped up its uranium enrichment activities and renovated its equipment.

“The Westerners gave us bother and harmed us in terms of development. But Iran did not give up. This is the quality of Iran and Iranians,” he added, stressing that Iran would oppose any irrational and incorrect policy.

Commenting on the calls for a change in Iran’s nuclear doctrine, Larijani said the Westerners, which claim that Iran’s dossier in the IAEA has a legal nature, must allow the IAEA to do its professional job and avoid interfering in the procedures of the UN nuclear agency.

Asked if Iran has to address the West’s concerns without the West allaying Iran’s economic concerns, Larijani said, “When they do not make any move to solve the problem, Iran will not take any step either naturally.”

He stated that the West cannot take a harsher economic action against Iran anymore, because they have already exercised the policy of maximum pressure.

Asked about the notion that outgoing US President Biden have eased the sanctions on Iran’s oil sales and that Trump can once again stop Iran’s oil exports, Larijani said, “That’s not true. The Americans, even the administration of Biden, have been blocking Iran’s oil sales as much as they could. But it was Iran that found ways to sell its oil.”

Describing the threat of new pressures on Iran as a media posture, he said all kinds of sanctions have been already imposed on Iran. “However, I should emphasize that I’m not saying that we would welcome such conditions and the new sanctions. No. In my mind, the best way for all of us is the course of negotiations and settlement of the problem. This will serve our national interest and benefit the Westerners as well, even the US.”

He said the international situation has changed, as the other countries, like Russia, have been sanctioned too. “In other words, a group of countries being sanctioned have gathered together and turned into a bloc that are interacting and trading with each other.”

Asked about the relations between Europe and the US under Trump, Larijani said the issue of Ukraine is of utmost importance for the Europeans.

He said the Ukraine war was important for Democrats, noting that its significance may decline in the tenure of Trump.

“I think the Ukraine war is a war of prestige for both Russia and Europe and would not end with such maneuvers. The Americans may withdraw to some extent from the war in Europe and Ukraine, but the debates inside Europe will increase, because it is a serious issue for them,” he said.

Larijani stated that Iran’s nuclear program is not the only file on the desk of the international arena, adding that there are several other dossiers.