Reuters/CCTV. Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi reaffirmed on Wednesday Iran's determination and full preparedness to defend itself against Israel's aggression, should what he calls a "fragile" ceasefire between the two states collapse.
Speaking with China Global Television Network (CGTN) in Tianjin, where he attended the SCO foreign ministers' meeting on Tuesday, Araghchi characterized the 12-day war with Israel as a unprovoked military aggression launched by Israel against Iran, not simply a "conflict."
The war began when Israel launched surprise attacks on key military and nuclear facilities in Iran on June 13, he said.
"It is not a conflict. It is an act of aggression by Israel against Iran, unprovoked aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran. We had no way but to exercise our right of self-defense. So, we defended our country. We defended it in a very courageous way. And we forced the 'aggressors' to stop the aggression and ask for an unconditional ceasefire which was accepted by us," he said, referring to the June 24 truce confirmed by both Iran and Israel.
Casting doubt on Israel's desire to truly honor the ceasefire, Araghchi said Iran stands firmly and full prepared to respond to any further aggression from the Israeli side.
"The ceasefire is of course fragile. The reason is obvious: that regime has a very bad record on that. We are very careful. We are fully prepared if the ceasefire is broken, but this is not our wish. That was not our wish from the beginning. We didn't want this war, but we were prepared for that. We don't want this war to continue, but again, we are fully prepared for that," he said.
