Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Tehran is working to strengthen its capabilities and raise its level of readiness to achieve “sustainable deterrence”, stressing that fighting and negotiations are interconnected tracks aimed at forcing the United States to change its behaviour and accept what he described as the legitimate demands of the Iranian people.
Qalibaf links fighting to changing US behaviour
Qalibaf added, in a speech delivered on Wednesday, that the United States “must be punished, change its behaviour and accept the legitimate demands of our people”. He accused the Americans of failing to honour their commitments, noting that Iran was continuing to fight while raising its level of readiness. He said his country was seeking to strengthen itself to a degree that would make what he called the “enemy” lose hope of waging war against it.
He said that “a strong Iran will make America realise that it cannot achieve its goals”, linking the development of Iranian capabilities to preventing Tehran’s adversaries from resorting to war. The parliament speaker said strengthening Iranian power would create “sustainable deterrence”, stressing the need to demonstrate this power to influential regional and global parties.
He added that “the enemy imagined that we were weak, so it attacked us, but it was mistaken”. Qalibaf said the memorandum of understanding had helped increase the strength of Iran’s armed forces and enhanced the country’s ability to withstand economic pressure. He did not separate the military and political tracks, instead viewing them as complementary means of achieving Tehran’s objectives.
Qalibaf said: “We are fighting until we drive the enemy to despair and force it to accept the demands of our people,” adding that every military victory achieved by Iran should be reflected in the political arena and that Tehran should obtain what he described as the concessions necessary to strengthen its power. The parliament speaker also said that Iran had “forced the United States to reach an understanding”, and said Washington had, in his words, signed “the document of its defeat”.
Tehran considers response to proposal to end war
He added that “the whole world is witnessing Iran’s victory”. The remarks came as Tehran considered the US response to Iran’s latest proposal to end the war. Iran had said that Washington agreed to some of the seven conditions set out in the proposal, while other points remained disputed between the two sides.
The Iranian proposal includes conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and beginning negotiations, including a halt to hostilities, lifting the naval blockade imposed on Iranian ports, releasing Tehran’s frozen assets and lifting sanctions imposed on Iranian oil.
