Iranian leaders warn of massive military response to any new attack

Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Saturday ordered the country's armed forces to respond immediately and effectively to any threat, to achieve maximum deterrence, according to Iranian media.

There would be no "geographical restrictions," and Iran would dictate when and under what conditions the conflict with the US would end, Khamenei said after meeting with military commanders, according to the reports.

The supreme leader also ordered the target list to be updated, it said.

All types of tangible and intangible US and Israeli assets within the military's reach were to be included, Khamenei, who holds ultimate authority over Iran's armed forces, was quoted as saying.

It comes after US President Donald Trump reportedly received a briefing on possible military options regarding Iran during a rare in-person meeting with Admiral Brad Cooper, head of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which is responsible for the Middle East.

The Wall Street Journal described the meeting as a possible indication that a new major US military operation could be imminent.

Foreign minister vows harsh response to new attacks

Earlier on Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi threatened massive military strikes in response to any new attack on the people of Iran.

Araghchi was responding to comments made by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during his visit to South Korea, when Merz called for a rapid end to the war with Iran and said that rising energy prices alone had cost Europe more than €100 billion ($112 billion).

Posting on X, Araghchi said: "100bn Euro is nothing compared to the Earth-shattering blow Iran's Powerful Armed Forces will deal against those who dare harm our people."

He noted that Merz had hailed Israeli-US bombing of Iran last year as "doing Europe's dirty work."

"Red lines are a thing of the past," Araghchi posted in English.

On June 17, 2025, during an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, Merz said: "This is the dirty work that Israel is doing - for all of us. We are also affected by this regime."

Merz went on to say that he had the greatest respect for the fact that Israel had the courage to go down this path and that otherwise, the world might have witnessed Tehran's terror continuing for months and years, potentially with a nuclear weapon.

Merz's "dirty work" remark attracted widespread criticism. He later said: "I did describe it that way. There is no need to repeat it. One can express it in different ways."