US would pay dearly if it goes to war with Iran

Stephen Lendman, an author and radio host in Chicago, made the remarks in reaction to a statement by the US government that using military force against Tehran was still a possibility.

Brian Hook, the US State Department's director of policy planning and head of Iran Action Group, said Thursday that US President Donald Trump was ready to use “all of the tools” at its disposal to pressure Iran.

"We have been very clear with the Iranian regime that we will not hesitate to use military force when our interests are threatened," Hook said.

A day earlier, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said that while Iran would continue developing military capabilities to repel possible attacks, it would not seek a war with any other nation.

Lendman said while the US hostility against Tehran was nothing new, the new statement by Hook indicated the Trump administration’s disregard for Tehran.

“America has been hostile to Iran since its 1979 revolution beginning with the Iran-Iraq War,” he said, referring to an 8-year-war that saw the US arm former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and even directly engage with Iranian forces.

The analyst noted that various US administrations have always had “war plans” in store for Iran and a slew of other countries that they’ve never used.

“The Trump regime is by far, in my judgment, the most hostile one… towards Iran” he said, adding the pressure campaign has reached its peak under the current US administration.

Under Trump, the White House has pulled out of a landmark nuclear deal with Iran, reinstated sanctions against the country and promoted plans for the formation of an Arab-Israeli alliance against Tehran.

Washington has explicitly announced plans to stop Iran’s oil exports to curtail its economy. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has even threatened people of Iran with “starvation.”

The pressure campaign, however, was doomed to fail, Lendman said.

“Destabilization has worked against other countries but never against Iran,” he argued. “Iran has had lots of practice going up against US hostile activities and I think Iran can very well handle any internal hostility that America instigates.”

The analyst did not rule out the possibility of a military confrontation between Iran and the US with Trump in office.

Such a war, he said, would most certainly draw Russia into the conflict as well, making things a lot harder for the US.

“If there was a war between the two countries, well everybody would pay for it but America most dearly” Lendman further said.