Iran warned on Nov. 1 that renewed war with the United States could last longer than the previous round of fighting, after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened further strikes.
Army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia said Trump would not be able to dictate when or on what terms another conflict ended, Iranian state television reported.
“We still have to take care of, I would say one or two sites, but we can do that in 10 minutes,” Trump told reporters in Florida on Oct. 31.
He singled out Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected underground nuclear complex, and renewed his threat at a campaign rally in Iowa on Nov. 1.
Axios, citing U.S. and Israeli sources, reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had pressed Trump during an Oct. 31 call to strike Iran immediately after the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections.
Trump favored giving negotiations more time, the report said.
Trump confirmed on Nov. 1 that he had discussed Iran with Netanyahu but did not elaborate.
The war began on Feb. 28 with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, which retaliated with missile and drone attacks across the region.
Revolutionary Guards spokesman Hossein Mohebbi said any conflict with the United States would have “no geographical limitations,” according to state television.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi urged Washington to choose diplomacy and said Iran remained prepared for both defense and negotiations, the official IRNA news agency reported.
Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei said on Oct. 31 that he had received a letter from U.S. Vice President JD Vance seeking to revive talks. He described a positive change in Washington’s tone but said he had not responded.
Rezaei said Iran would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz or resume negotiations unless its conditions were met. These include unfreezing Iranian assets abroad, lifting sanctions, ending the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and halting the war on all fronts.
Iran has claimed control over the strait and repeatedly targeted vessels attempting to cross without its authorization.
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the Emirati president, told a conference in Manama that the United Arab Emirates hoped for a diplomatic breakthrough but was “braced for the worst.”
