Iran’s top negotiator threatens ‘faster, more intense’ response to US attacks

Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has warned that Iran will respond more swiftly and forcefully to any US attacks following recent confrontations. Speaking on Sunday, Ghalibaf stated that the era of proportional responses has ended, and any aggression against Iran's interests and security will face a more intense retaliation.

The threats came after a series of exchanges between Iranian forces and US warships, during which Tehran targeted American vessels and Iran retaliated by attacking Iranian oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. US Central Command reported disabling two Iranian oil tankers off Iran's Kharg island and completely destroying one in the Sea of Oman, while claiming their forces successfully evaded Iranian attacks.

Ghalibaf also called for better management of Iranian imports to counter what he described as a US campaign aiming to disrupt Iran's supply and energy systems. Speaking on Sunday, a Revolutionary Guards spokesman, Hossein Mohebi, claimed that Iran is using the conflict to inflict economic damage on the US, stating that for every dollar of economic damage inflicted on Iran, the US incurs tens of dollars of damage in return.