Speaker of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has issued a stern response to comments made by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who threatened that Iranian oil tankers would be "destroyed and sunk" if they posed a threat to US vessels.
According to the Operative Information Center-OMM, Ghalibaf addressed the remarks via social media, emphasizing that the region's oil and natural gas infrastructure is vast and inherently sensitive from a security perspective. He warned that any potential US aggression against Iranian assets would be met with a reciprocal response, noting that American oil and gas facilities operating in the region are equally vulnerable.
"If you attack our assets, you will be attacked in return. We have proven this in the past. Look at your bases, which are now unusable, and draw your conclusions," Ghalibaf stated. The tensions between Washington and Tehran escalated following a September 5 statement by Secretary Hegseth on the X platform, where he claimed that the Iranian tanker fleet is defenseless against US military capabilities, including aircraft, warships, and submarines. This exchange of rhetoric has raised international concerns regarding potential instability in the Middle East, a region critical to global energy supplies.
