Secretary of the Iranian Expediency Council Mohsen Rezai: U.S. Is Using "Porcupine Strategy" against Iran. The U.S. Decision to Confront Iran Has Already Been Made

Following are excerpts from an interview with Mohsen Rezai, Secretary of the Iranian Expediency Council, which aired on Iranian Channel 2 on January 18, 2007.

Mohsen Rezai: [The Americans] talk about the "Porcupine Strategy."

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The porcupine uses the following method: When it faces a snake, it begins to attack it from the tail, and not from the head. What they did in Lebanon and Iraq... They think Iran's tail is in those regions, and that after Lebanon, they would deal with Iraq, and then, they would deal with the head of the snake in Tehran. It is not implausible that they had dreams of this kind, but as we all know, they encountered difficulties from their first move in Lebanon. They faced severe problems here too, and they will in the future as well.

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In my opinion, Mr. Bush has taken a completely miscalculated risk. He has slogans like "Death or Victory" in his mind. When asked about this, he said: "We do not promise to do miracles, but it will be a disaster if we are defeated in Iraq." What does this mean? He says: "I don't promise to be able to solve the Iranian issue, and I don't give anybody any guarantees." That's what he said, in plain language. If we want to put Mr. Bush's diplomatic language into plain words, we would say: "I don't promise a victory over Iran, but if I do nothing, there will be a disaster. Therefore, I will make a move, and if there is even one chance in a thousand that I will succeed in my confrontation with Iran, it is better than not carrying out any attack, and for America to face a disaster in the region." That's why I claim this is a serious matter. Of course, the confrontation with Iraq has already begun. This is indisputable. But as for whether they will execute their plan for Iran – this is open to discussion. However, the fact that they've decided to confront Iran is serious in itself.

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In the past, the Islamic Republic of Iran used to confront America's proxies, while America was behind the scenes. Now America wants to confront us face to face. That is what happened during the [Iran-Iraq] war. Yes, it happened toward the end of the war. The Americans strongly supported Saddam, and they used him to confront us.

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Clearly, the Islamic Republic has a serious endeavor, and it has to muster all its abilities. Under no circumstances should we underestimate the enemy. At the same time, we must not shy away from psychological warfare, because the Americans' desire is to defeat us without firing a single shot.

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Thank God we have well-trained armed forces. There are thousands of martyrdom-seekers in the country. At any moment, if asked by the armed forces – I will be ready to sacrifice my worthless life for the sake of Islam and the Iranian people, whether by going to the front line or by recruiting Basij members.

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Let's suppose they fire a couple of missiles at the deserts of Natanz or elsewhere. So what? There was an explosion recently near Yazd and Kerman. You probably heard that both districts witnessed this explosion. Apparently, it was a meteor. Our people are not afraid of explosions. [The Americans] also know that blowing up two or three places will not solve the Iranian issue.