TEHRAN, Iran, Middle East: An Iranian lawmaker warned Wednesday that Iran’s nuclear retaliation could mirror the weapon used in any US attack, while saying he doubted President Donald Trump would order a nuclear strike.
Fada Hossein Maleki, a member of parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, made the remarks to Khabar Online.
Maleki said a US nuclear attack could push the world into a wider war. However, he said he did not expect Trump to take that step.
Asked whether Iran would answer a nuclear strike with a nuclear weapon, Maleki said Tehran would respond to whatever the United States used. He did not explicitly say Iran possesses nuclear weapons.
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Meanwhile, Maleki said Iran had moved beyond a purely defensive posture. He described its current approach as “active and offensive deterrence.”
He also claimed Iran still had military capabilities that it had not revealed. Any response could match or exceed the level of a US attack, he said.
On diplomacy, Maleki said Tehran would not resume stalled talks with Washington unless the United States met earlier commitments.
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He added that disputes over the Strait of Hormuz remained unresolved. Maleki also said Iran’s talks with Oman were separate and excluded US participation.
