Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei said on Saturday evening that US President Donald Trump, through his aggression against Iran, had pushed the world towards seeking nuclear weapons, in an indirect warning that Tehran itself could consider moving in that direction.
Rezaei also vowed to defeat the US economic war against Iran, warning neighbouring countries that their interests could be targeted if they participated in efforts to economically isolate Tehran. He further threatened to prevent any oil from being exported from the region, whether through the Strait of Hormuz or other routes.
In an interview with Iranian television, Rezaei said that any future war would be different from the last, pointing to changes in how Iran would manage such a conflict.
Rezaei Hints at Possible Shift in Nuclear Doctrine
Rezaei said Trump had, “through his foolishness and aggression against Iran, pushed the world towards thinking about acquiring the nuclear bomb”.
He argued that countries had concluded that membership in the International Atomic Energy Agency and accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons no longer guaranteed protection from a US attack.
According to Rezaei, Trump had created a state of nuclear insecurity rather than strengthening nuclear security.
He said the resulting environment had led countries to view nuclear weapons as a more effective deterrent than advanced US fighter jets.
Rezaei claimed that the F-35 had “lost its prestige” in Iran and that Arab states, too, no longer placed their trust in American weapons.
He also insisted that the Strait of Hormuz remained “closed”, despite what he described as US claims to the contrary.
The strait, he said, would not reopen unless the United States changed its conduct and fulfilled the commitments contained in the memorandum of understanding concluded last June.
Rezaei added that Iran, which possesses more than 50 per cent of the Gulf coastline, “is the party authorised to manage the strait”.
He also referred to an agreement with Oman concerning a central navigation route through the strait, but said that the agreement would remain only on paper as long as Washington failed to honour its commitments.
Rezaei said Iran was seeking to end the war in the region and was “standing against advocates of war at the international level”.
Warning to Regional States
Addressing the US administration’s announcement of an economic campaign aimed at isolating Iran, Rezaei dismissed Trump’s measures as “nothing more than a propaganda move”, asking what Washington could do that it had not already done before.
He said Iran had successfully overcome previous pressures and had exported 70 million barrels of oil over the past two months.
Rezaei warned regional states against participating in the economic war against Tehran, saying Iran would regard any country that joined it as “an enemy”.
He said Tehran would first contact such countries in an effort to dissuade them from their positions.
“But if their participation continues, Iran will not allow a single drop of oil to pass through the Gulf, whether through the Strait of Hormuz or through other routes,” he said.
Rezaei also threatened to strike the interests of countries surrounding Iran if they participated in the US economic campaign.
He said Iran had so far targeted only US military bases while avoiding attacks on economic interests.
However, he warned that this approach would change if Washington continued its economic war.
Iranian forces, he said, were fully prepared to target US interests, oil companies and economic assets operating throughout the region.
Rezaei further warned that any US base receiving additional forces, or any location hosting meetings between Americans and groups opposed to the Iranian government, “will become a direct target for operations by the Iranian forces”.
Changes to Iran’s War Management and Diplomacy
Rezaei also called for reforms to Iran’s diplomatic conduct after several rounds of negotiations with Washington in which, he said, the United States repeatedly broke its commitments.
He said Tehran had been undergoing defensive and political development since the June 2026 war.
“Iran today will not be the Iran that existed before the war, and the arrogant and conceited America will not be the America that existed before the war,” Rezaei said.
He said Iran’s approach to international affairs had changed.
Referring to Tehran’s experience of negotiating with Washington, he added: “We urgently need to reform our diplomatic conduct after going through several rounds of negotiations and seeing the Americans repeatedly break their promises.”
Rezaei stressed that Iran would not surrender to an economic blockade and said the country had learned over many years how to circumvent sanctions and sell its oil.
He added that changes would take place in the management of war, diplomacy and political and social affairs, with new personnel and capabilities being introduced.
He also reiterated that any future war would differ from the previous one because of changes made to Iran’s management of warfare.
Iran’s Internal Front
Rezaei described Iran’s domestic front as “solid”, saying the Iranian public and government stood united behind the armed forces.
He contrasted this with what he described as divisions inside the United States over the war.
According to Rezaei, the Americans had “lost hope in the success of military operations” and had turned instead to economic blockade in the belief that it might prepare the ground for further military action.
He also claimed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had promised Trump that Iran would surrender within several months if subjected to a blockade, a wager that Rezaei said had “proven to be a failure”.
As part of efforts to strengthen Iran economically, Rezaei announced that the Secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council was preparing an “economic security document”.
He said the document was intended to allow companies and the private sector to continue operating with confidence and stability despite the pressures of the blockade.
Rezaei also criticised those placing their hopes in the opposition or in previous political models, including a restoration of the monarchy.
Referring to what he called the “Jolani case” in Syria, Rezaei said Jolani “made extensive concessions to the United States, and yet Israel attacked Syria only a few days ago”.
He urged those who believed “the return of the Pahlavi regime would have turned Iran into a paradise” to look at Syria.
“If they had managed to restore the Pahlavi regime to power, they would have divided Iran into five parts,” he said.
Rezaei renewed Tehran’s position that Iran “will not surrender in any way”, pledging to “defend Iran to the last drop of blood” and “not allow any enemy to set foot on Iranian soil”.
He also said the Mecca Defence Agreement signed by Pakistan, Türkiye and Saudi Arabia “indicates that America has informed those countries of its desire to leave the region”.
According to Rezaei, the parties involved had asked Tehran to endorse the agreement.
“They asked us to support the agreement, but how can we endorse something when we do not know its provisions and do not know what was actually signed?” he said.
