IRGC Deputy Commander Says US Attack Would Expand Iran's Influence in the Region

The Deputy Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that the Islamic Republic today has the "upper hand" in the region and deemed the possibility of a US military attack on Iran as unlikely, stating that any potential attack would lead to the "expansion of influence" of the Islamic Republic in the region. According to Tasnim News Agency, Hossein Salami said in a speech on September 14 that the US "neither has the political conditions for war nor will any country ally with it (against Iran)." He emphasized that a potential military attack on Iran would result in the "further development of the influence of the Islamic Republic of Iran." Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has also repeatedly stated that from a "political" perspective, the possibility of war "does not exist," but the armed forces must increase their capabilities. Following this, the Young Journalists Club website, affiliated with state television, cited Khamenei's remarks, suggesting that concerns over a potential attack by the Islamic Republic on Israel and US bases in the region were among the reasons for dismissing the likelihood of a US attack on Iran. Previously, Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council of Iran, alluded to US bases in the region, stating that "50,000" of its military personnel are "under Iran's sword." Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, stated on September 10 that the "hit-and-run era" in the global arena has ended, and the Islamic Republic will respond to any "hostile action" against the country with a "tenfold response." Concurrently, the US Navy is conducting naval exercises in the Persian Gulf amid rising tensions with Iran. The Iranian President and military commanders have threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz in response to renewed US sanctions. However, Admiral John Richardson, the operational commander of the US Navy, warned Iran that the United States will maintain freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz by any means necessary. Meanwhile, Admiral Scott Stearney, commander of the Fifth Fleet, stated that the US Navy plans to conduct military exercises in September to demonstrate its readiness to ensure freedom of passage in the waterways of the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. Stearney also accused Iran of exacerbating "instability" in the region through its activities in the Middle East. The Islamic Republic of Iran is accused of interfering in the affairs of other regional countries such as Yemen, Syria, Bahrain, Iraq, and Lebanon through its military arm abroad, the Quds Force of the IRGC. Meanwhile, verbal clashes between Iran and the US regarding developments in Iraq have increased, and following the escalation of protests in Basra, Iraq, the United States warned the Islamic Republic that it would respond quickly and decisively to any attack by Iran-backed militias in Iraq.