Iran's Pezeshkian declares ‘full-fledged war' against West

Iranian President Mesoud Pezeshkian has declared a “full-scale” war against the West, though he did not specify whether it would involve armed conflict.

In an interview with the website of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Pezeshkian said: “In my opinion, we are in a full-fledged war with the United States (U.S.), Israel and Europe,” adding, “They do not want our country to stand on its feet.”

Pezeshkian decried the crippling American sanctions imposed on Iran since Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office in January. He said the West is creating difficulties for Iran by “besieging us from every aspect.”

He continued: “On one side, expectations in society have risen; on the other side, the West is blocking our sales, trade, exchanges - creating problems in terms of livelihood, cultural, political and security-wise.”

The U.S. struck Iran’s nuclear sites in Operation Midnight Hammer late June after the 12-day Iran-Israel war.

The Iranian president’s statement comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit the U.S. for a confab this weekend.

Pezeshkian urged the public to do everything in their power to fix the country

Neither Washington nor Tel Aviv has formally reacted to Pezeshkian’s comments.