TEHRAN (Realist English). Iran has officially acknowledged the possibility of prolonging its military conflict with the United States for years – at least until the end of Donald Trump’s presidential term in January 2029.
The statement was made on 11 August in an interview with US television network PBS by Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, adviser to the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
“One way is to prolong this war until the next presidential term and inflict such damage on the enemy that if anyone else wants to attack Iran, they will know they will have to pay for it,” Naqdi said.
According to him, Tehran intends to achieve “robust deterrence” that will forever discourage Washington from attacking the Islamic Republic.
‘The US military is weaker than we thought’
Naqdi emphasised that over the five months of war, Iran has gained unique experience in direct combat with US armed forces – something it had never had before.
“Over these five months, we have learned this. We have also seen that the US military is weaker than we thought,” the IRGC adviser stated.
He also accused Washington of lacking a clear strategy: “Every two or three days they announce a new target.” In the Iranian general’s view, the US’s main goals – toppling Iran’s leadership and causing the country’s collapse – have not been achieved, and this in itself is a victory for Tehran.
Missile potential: ‘We produce more than we launch’
Naqdi assured that Iran possesses sufficient military capability to sustain a multi‑year war. “Even if this war lasts for years, Iranian missiles will be launched. Every day we produce more missiles than we launch,” he said.
Thus, Tehran is signalling that it can withstand a prolonged war of attrition, while US arsenals, according to media reports, are already under strain.
А war without end
The US‑Iran conflict has now lasted nearly six months. It began in February 2026 with a joint US‑Israeli operation against Iran. In June, Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding providing for a cessation of hostilities, but the truce was broken.
Since then, the sides have been unable to reach a lasting agreement. On 10 August, Trump said he saw two options for dealing with Iran: “just go with the flow” and let Tehran collapse economically, or strike “really, really hard.” At the same time, he called himself Iran’s “banker,” controlling its assets.
Naqdi’s statement came amid a sharp escalation of tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, where traffic has virtually halted, and against the backdrop of new Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, in which three Pakistani citizens were killed.
Iran has officially shifted to a strategy of a “war of attrition” aimed at outlasting Trump’s presidency. Tehran makes no secret of its intention to exhaust the US military and make future attacks on the Islamic Republic too costly for any potential adversary.
For Trump, who promised to finish the Iranian campaign in “weeks,” this means the war could become the defining challenge of his presidency. With midterm elections approaching and public support for the conflict falling (only one in three Americans supports the war against Iran), Tehran’s statement is not just rhetoric – it is a systemic challenge to US strategy in the Middle East.
