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The US president said he would support the attacks if Tehran rebuilds its nuclear or missile programs.
Iran has vowed to respond harshly to any aggression after US President Donald Trump threatened further military action if Tehran tried to rebuild its nuclear program or missile capabilities.
President Masoud Pezeshkian issued the warning Tuesday, a day after Trump met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Florida estate, where he once again weighed heavily on the Israeli regional narrative.
The United States had not previously announced that it would target Iran’s ballistic capabilities, which has long been an Israeli aspiration, instead focusing on Tehran’s nuclear program. Iran has repeatedly said its nuclear activities are for civilian purposes only, and neither U.S. intelligence nor the U.N. nuclear watchdog found evidence of atomic weapons production before the U.S. and Israeli attacks in June.
Iran has ruled out any negotiations on its missile program.
The leaders’ comments raise the specter of a resumption of conflict just months after a devastating war. 12 Day War in June which killed more than 1,100 Iranians and left 28 dead in Israel.
Pezeshkian said Iran’s response to any aggression would be “severe and regret-inducing.” His message of defiance came hours after Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort that Washington could carry out another major attack on Iran.
“Now I hear that Iran is trying to rebuild itself, and if that’s the case, we’re going to have to take it down,” Trump said, alongside Netanyahu. “We’re going to put them out of harm’s way.”
The US president said he would “immediately” support strikes against Iran’s nuclear program and its missile facilities if Tehran continues to develop long-range weapons.
Israeli officials have expressed concern in recent weeks that Iran is quietly replenishing its ballistic missile stockpile, which was significantly depleted during the June conflict.
“If the Americans cannot reach an agreement with the Iranians ending their ballistic missile program, it may be necessary to confront Tehran,” an Israeli official told Ynet this week.
Pezeshkian recently described the standoff as a “full-scale war” with the United States, Israel and Europe, “more complicated and more difficult” than the bloody conflict between Iran and Iraq in the 1980s, which left more than a million dead.
The June war saw Israel launch nearly 360 strikes in 27 Iranian provinces over 12 days, according to conflict monitoring group ACLED, targeting military installations, nuclear facilities and government buildings.
The assault destroyed about 1,000 Iranian ballistic missiles and killed more than 30 top military commanders and at least 11 nuclear scientists.
Iran fired more than 500 missiles at Israel during the conflict, about 36 of which landed in populated areas. While Trump claimed that Iran’s nuclear capabilities had been “completely wiped out” by the strikes, experts disputed that claim, saying Tehran may have hidden stockpiles of enriched uranium and could resume production within months.
Despite the losses, Iranian officials insist the country is now better prepared for confrontation. In a recent interview, Pezeshkian said that Iran’s military forces are “stronger in terms of equipment and manpower” than before the ceasefire.
The war has failed to spark the internal unrest that Netanyahu would have hoped for. No significant protests materialized and daily life in Tehran largely continued despite the bombing.
