Iranian leaders welcome US midterms, but Trump may still attack

Tehran, Iran – Iranian authorities are coating the sweeping midterm election defeats for United States President Donald Trump’s Republican Party arsenic a repudiation by the American nationalist of the warfare connected Iran.

“Conscience oregon the outgo of living, Americans said NO TO WAR, and we endorse this message,” said Iranian parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who led the Iranian delegation successful talks with Washington that led to the signing of a short-lived memorandum of knowing successful June.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3Who determines Iran’s warring and negotiating presumption amid US threats?
• list 2 of 3America is heading for 2 years of law brinkmanship
• list 3 of 3How large is the Republican midterms loss, and is determination a metallic lining?

“If the US [government] betrays their nationalist volition to service planetary paymasters and blackmailers, it volition larn our NO comes with a Nightmare,” work a station connected his X relationship connected Wednesday.

Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, the caput of the Iranian judiciary, said: “Trump was defeated successful some warfare and politics” and promised that the Islamic republic volition enforce much defeats.

Analysts said the sweeping victories for Democrats, which complicate the president’s remaining years successful office, would lone service to marque the enactment of Iran much adamant astir their demands for ending the warfare started by the US and Israel connected February 28.

Trump has been talking astir the possibility of attacking Iran for weeks, but says helium hasn’t made a determination yet, arsenic a US naval blockade, sanctions and commercialized disruptions are besides heavy pressuring the country.

Sanam Vakil, manager of the Middle East and North Africa Programme astatine Chatham House, said the electoral decision of Trump’s Republican Party volition summation unit to extremity the Iran war, but it does not regularisation retired further strikes.

“He needs a diplomatic triumph oregon astatine worst an off-ramp, yet successful the look of decision helium whitethorn beryllium reluctant to look weak,” she told Al Jazeera.

Hamidreza Azizi, elder Iran expert astatine the International Crisis Group, said the consciousness of triumph being displayed by Iranian decision-makers volition apt marque them much uncompromising connected halfway demands. Those see 7 conditions acceptable for the partial reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, arsenic good arsenic a request for the US to instrumentality the archetypal step.

“The likelihood of Iran making concessions connected the atomic contented could besides go adjacent little than before,” helium told Al Jazeera.

‘Myth of American invincibility’

Wednesday marked the day of the 1979 seizure of the US embassy successful Tehran by Iranian students, triggering a hostage situation that acceptable the code for relations successful the decades since.

In Tehran, the authorities organised demonstrations and speeches astir the embassy gathering and different downtown areas to denounce US-led “global arrogance”.

State-organised marches and events were besides held successful Bandar Abbas, Mashhad, Qom and galore different cities. State tv besides showed pro-government events for schoolchildren.

A connection attributed to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was released to people the day.

“Now, the signifier of the Persian Gulf, particularly the Strait of Hormuz, has invalidated the story of American invincibility,” work the connection from Khamenei, who has not been seen oregon heard publically since becoming ultimate person successful aboriginal March pursuing the sidesplitting of his father.

He asserted that immoderate inactive harbour anticipation that partisan changes successful the US oregon granting concessions to Washington would halt their “enmity” towards Iran, but “they are harshly mistaken”.

Khamenei said the lone mode to attain “absolute deterrence” was to prosecute strength.

In Tehran’s Enghelab Square, a elephantine billboard depicting Trump down situation bars was unveiled connected Tuesday. “We volition termination Trump,” work the accompanying message.

State-linked media besides intimately followed the US elections, and cheered for immoderate of the bigger losses for hawkish Republicans.

“Trump’s nightmare,” work the reformist Sazandegi newspaper’s header connected Wednesday, accompanied by a full-page representation of Abdul El-Sayed, who has go the archetypal Muslim legislator aft winning his contention successful Michigan, and attacked the pro-Israel AIPAC lobby – which had spent tens of millions of dollars against him – successful his triumph speech.

What comes next?

Iran and the US proceed to combat implicit power successful and astir the Strait of Hormuz, portion the Trump medication besides counts connected changing the behaviour of Iran’s authorities done imposing a blockade and economical unit connected 90 cardinal Iranians.

Chatham House’s Vakil said she expects intensified diplomacy alongside continued subject threats implicit the coming weeks, with constricted subject strikes inactive a possibility.

“An interim statement implicit the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the blockade appears much realistic than a broad settlement,” she said.

Barbara Slavin, a distinguished chap astatine the Stimson Center successful Washington, said she was acrophobic the US president would usage the “lame duck” play of his presidency to onslaught Iran again.

“Trump inactive retains tremendous powers arsenic commander-in-chief, particularly earlier the caller Congress is seated,” she told Al Jazeera, adding that the magnitude of the Democratic triumph has made all-out warfare little likely, successful her view.

“It is wide that the warfare and the resulting economical situation defeated the Republicans,” she said.