Khamenei warns US hostility persists despite midterm defeat

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei stated on Wednesday that Americans expecting a policy shift in Washington are mistaken. He issued this warning hours after the US midterm elections resulted in a major Democratic victory, with the party gaining control of both chambers of Congress.

In a written statement posted to his website, Khamenei argued that the US remains hostile regardless of which party holds power. He claimed that the nation's control of the Strait of Hormuz destroyed the idea of American invincibility. Khamenei warned that any new US attack would trigger a much wider Iranian response.

The leader described the ongoing confrontation as a daily act of resistance against the United States. His remarks coincided with the National Day of the Fight Against Global Arrogance, which marks the anniversary of the 1979 US embassy seizure in Tehran. He attributed Iran's management of the strait and the elimination of US military bases in the region to the conflict that began in February.

While Khamenei maintained a cautious tone, other Iranian officials reacted with optimism. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the parliament speaker and chief negotiator, said Americans voted against war due to conscience or the cost of living. He added that if the US government ignores this public will, Iran's refusal to negotiate will come with a nightmare.

Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to the Supreme Leader, claimed that Iran was the true winner of the election. He wrote on social media that Iran successfully transferred the economic costs of the war to the United States. Judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei stated that Trump suffered defeats in both war and politics, predicting further losses for the US president.

Mehdi Tabatabaei, deputy head of communications at the president's office, cited Israel's war in Gaza and the futility of the conflict with Iran as reasons for the Republican defeat. Trump acknowledged that the war likely hurt his party's performance, noting that voters were not prepared for the short-term increase in gasoline prices.

Analysts in Tehran suggest that a Democratic Congress could restrain the president and make him less reckless. However, some officials fear that Trump might view the result as a personal insult and launch a new round of war in revenge. The US has already warned it could conduct a short, intensive military campaign against Iran following the elections.

Hamidreza Moghadamfar, an adviser to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander, outlined Iran's next steps. He said the country would target assets beyond US bases if Gulf states allowed Washington to launch attacks from their soil. He specifically named the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain as potential targets for a new doctrine and new technology.