Iran's Supreme Leader: "Democrats' Landslide Win Won't Change Hostile Policy Toward Iran"

Khamenei: "It's an illusion to count on changes in the U.S. administration"
Iranian leadership: "U.S. voters voiced opposition to war"

Amid a landslide victory for the Democratic Party in the U.S. midterm elections, Iran's new leader Mojtaba Khamenei took a hardline stance, saying that changes in the U.S. political landscape would not alter its hostile policy toward Iran.

According to the Associated Press and other outlets on November 4 (local time), Iran's new leader Mojtaba Khamenei said in a written statement released that day, "It is a grave delusion to expect that partisan changes within the U.S. ruling establishment will change America's actions, or to think that Iran's concessions will ease U.S. hostility."

Khamenei warned in particular that if the United States resumes military attacks on Iran, the war could spread across the Middle East. "If such acts of aggression are repeated, the scale of the war will be far broader," he said, stressing that "the measures Iran has taken so far, including in the Strait of Hormuz, are only the beginning."

Referring to the United States as the "Great Satan," he criticized Washington, saying, "What the United States truly wants is the unconditional surrender of the Iranian people." He added, "Even the slightest sign of concession will embolden an arrogant enemy and lead to further aggression."

He also claimed that recent developments in the Middle East, including the Persian Gulf, were challenging perceptions of U.S. military superiority. "The current situation in the region shows that the myth of American invincibility is false," Khamenei said.

Senior Iranian officials also interpreted the U.S. midterm election results as a manifestation of opposition within the United States to the war with Iran. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of Iran's parliament and the lead negotiator in ceasefire talks with the United States, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, "The American people have clearly expressed their opposition to the war, and we support that message."

Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also claimed that U.S. voters had sent a clear message through the election. "If the United States continues to ignore reality, the consequences of such a grave miscalculation will far exceed anything it has experienced so far," he said.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.