TEHRAN - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s advisor assailed President Trump Tuesday, saying he will get a “war” for listening to National Security Advisor John Bolton, referring to him as “the mustache.”
Hesamoddin Ashena, Rouhani’s key advisor, took to Twitter after U.S. military experts suggested “Iran or its proxies” damaged four commercial ships off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sunday.
“You wanted a better deal with Iran. Looks like you are going to get a war instead. That’s what happens when you listen to the mustache. Good luck in 2020!” Ashena wrote in a tweet.
Ashena’s comments were also echoed by Iran’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Hamid Baeidinejad, who warned the U.S. in an interview with Sky News on Tuesday.
“Don’t test us,” he said is the Iranian regime’s message to the Trump administration, noting that the Iranian military is “fully ready” for any conflict in the region.
“While we have renounced any escalation in the region, I would assure you that Iranian armed forces are fully ready for any eventuality in the region, so they should not try to test the determination of Iran to confront any escalation in the region,” he said.
Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei however later appeared to downplay any prospect of war between the two countries.Iran’s state TV quoted Khamenei on Tuesday as calling negotiations with the U.S. “poison” and saying: “This is not a military confrontation, because no war is going to happen.”
Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, said: “Neither we, nor they are seeking war, they know that it is not to their benefit.”
Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, also sought to downplay any notion of conflict.
“We fundamentally do not seek a war with Iran, we’re looking for the regime to simply stop conducting assassination campaigns throughout Europe,” he said Tuesday in the seaside resort of Sochi, Russia.
His comment follows assertions by Trump administration officials that they have detected signs that Iranian or Iranian-backed proxies were preparing for possible attacks against American interests in the Mideast. The administration cited the threats as the reason for expediting the deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group and other military resources to the region. (Fox News)