Tehran: As the Middle East conflict intensified, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that his country is ready for a potential ground
threat from the United States. In an interview with NBC News, when asked about the likely US invasion of Iran, Araghchi said, "We are waiting for them.” The Iranian Foreign Minister also stated that Iran is confident that Iran would confront US troops and that would be a “disaster” for the US. “We are prepared for any eventuality. Even for ground invasion, our soldiers are ready for any scenario. When I said we are waiting for them, it did not mean that we are waiting for the continuation of the war. No, but we have prepared ourselves to confront any scenario," Araghchi stated. Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump had hinted sending ground troops to Iran. President Trump had told The New York Post on Monday that he is not ruling out sending US ground troops into Iran “if they were necessary." Araghchi On Attacking Gulf Countries: When asked about attacking the neighbouring Gulf countries, Araghchi told the media house that Iran had not attacked any of its neghbours, but targeted only US bases in those countries. “We have not attacked our neighbours. We have not attacked Muslim countries... We have attacked American targets and American bases, American installations, which are unfortunately located in the soils of our neighbours,” the Iranian FM told the media house. Araghchi further added that he had spoken with his counterparts of the Gulf countries and explained to them that they are not the target. The Iranian Foreign Minister also dismissed attacks on civilian areas in the Gulf countries, including Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as “collateral damage”. Araghchi On Closure Of Strait Of Hormuz: In contradiction to claims made by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Brig. Gen. Ebrahim Jabbari, Aaghchi stated that the Strait of Hormuz is open for all. Notably, earlier Jabbari had stated that any ship approaching the Strait of Hormuz would be destroyed. Around 20 percent of global oil supplies reportedly pass through this route. On February 28, the US and Israel launched coordinated strikes on Iran, killing its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and top military leadership. In retaliation, Iran carried out massive strikes on Israel and US military bases and oil facilities in the Gulf countries.
