TEHRAN, Iran — Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued a stark declaration that his nation is engaged in a comprehensive conflict with the United States, Israel, and European powers. The provocative statement emerged just prior to a critical diplomatic meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump.
In a Saturday interview published on Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s official platform, President Pezeshkian characterized the current geopolitical confrontation as more severe than Iran’s devastating 1980-1988 war with Iraq, which resulted in over one million casualties. “We are in a full-scale war with the U.S., Israel and Europe; they don’t want our country to remain stable,” the Iranian leader asserted.
Pezeshkian emphasized the complex nature of this modern conflict, describing Western opposition as “more complicated and more difficult” than conventional warfare. The timing of these remarks appears strategically significant, coinciding with Netanyahu’s scheduled visit to the United States where Iranian relations were anticipated to dominate discussions.
The backdrop to this diplomatic tension includes recent military exchanges between the involved parties. During a twelve-day aerial confrontation in June, combined Israeli and American operations reportedly resulted in approximately 1,100 Iranian casualties, including high-ranking military officials and nuclear researchers. Iran’s counterstrikes with missile barrages claimed 28 lives in Israel, further escalating regional hostilities.