On Friday, Iran’s top security official, Mohsen Rezaei, pushed back against President Donald Trump’s claim that Tehran is close to surrendering, accusing the U.S. president of confusing declarations of victory with reality.
Iran Security Chief Fires Back At Trump
Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, criticized Trump in a post on X after the president said Iran was “ready to fold up” and that the U.S. could win the war shortly after the November midterm elections.
“After one failure after another, the worst president in American history just keeps talking—and talking,” Rezaei wrote, adding that Trump’s words had “outrun his own fantasies.”
“You can win every day in your own imagination,” Rezaei said. “But reality is shaped by Iran—by its people, its soldiers, and its missiles.”
Trump Says Iran Is ‘Ready to Fold Up’
Trump made the remarks Thursday night during an event at a Peterbilt Motors facility in Denton, Texas.
“We have a war going on with a country that will never have a nuclear weapon and is ready to fold up,” Trump said. He added that he believed the U.S. would win “right after the election,” while leaving open the possibility of an earlier end.
Trump also said the U.S. was “trying to be nice” to Iran’s current leadership, while acknowledging uncertainty over whom Washington could negotiate with.
Trump Leaves Door Open to More Iran Strikes
Earlier this week, Trump separately told TIME that U.S. military action against Iran could resume after the midterm elections if Washington and Tehran fail to reach an agreement. He also said he did not believe “you could ever have peace” with Iran.
On Tuesday, Trump said that he was unsure whether Iran was ready to “give up yet,” while saying that Tehran was faring “very poorly” in its war with the U.S., Reuters reported.
A U.S. blockade has severely disrupted Iran’s oil exports, a crucial source of revenue, while the economic fallout from the war has increased pressure on the Iranian population.
Despite those challenges, Iran’s president told the UN General Assembly last week that Tehran would not surrender to U.S. pressure but was open to peace negotiations.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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