This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Former European Commissioner Thierry Breton said on Monday that Iran holds the keys to war and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz depends on its will, despite ongoing threats from US President Donald Trump, Anadolu Agency reports.
“Those who hold the keys are the Iranians, whether we like it or not,” Breton told French broadcaster BFM TV.
Stressing that Tehran is in a position of strength, he noted that Iranians organized themselves and were not alone in the war with China supplying components and expertise.
Breton said Iran “has entered an asymmetric war” with “the best army in the world,” but warned that US reserves are dwindling.
“Since the start of hostilities, the equivalent of two years’ production of Patriot missile system has been used up. The Pentagon is starting to worry,” he added.
Highlighting that Tehran has been preparing for this for 40 years, Breton further stressed that Trump is “under pressure, particularly from voters.”
The region has been on alert since the US and Israel launched a joint offensive on Iran on Feb. 28, killing more than 1,400 people to date, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Jordan, Iraq and Gulf countries hosting US military assets. It has also restricted the movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
READ: Iran says Strait of Hormuz will never return to previous state
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.


- WHO warns of catastrophic risks after strike on Bushehr nuclear plant
- Palestinian Children’s Day: Tens of thousands orphaned in Gaza
- A ground war with Iran risks another Vietnam for America
- Attacks on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon ‘must cease immediately’: Spanish premier
- Greenpeace ship to join upcoming Global Sumud humanitarian aid flotilla to Gaza

- When the world moves faster for oil than for lives
- Iran demands ‘end to imposed war,’ rejects idea of ceasefire
- The “Ultra-Apartheid” Convergence: Regional Escalation and the Engineered Asphyxiation of Palestine
- Israeli lawmaker petitions Supreme Court to overturn death penalty law for Palestinian prisoners
- Iran holds keys to war despite US threats: Ex-EU commissioner
- Israeli military says 11 soldiers killed, 375 wounded since Iran war
- Israeli fire kills Palestinian, wounds others in southern Gaza despite ceasefire
- Iran says its IRGC intelligence chief killed in US-Israeli attack
- The inevitable decline and fall of Zionism
- Iran says Strait of Hormuz will never return to previous state
- Iran warns region will become “hell” if attacks on its infrastructure expand
- UNRWA: Services for Palestinian refugees cut by 20% amid funding crisis
- Drone attack targets US Victoria base near Baghdad airport
- Gargash: Iran strategy will strengthen US, Israeli role in Gulf
- US, Iran and mediators discussing possible 45-day ceasefire: Report
- Rented Power, Borrowed Strength: The Illusion of Gulf Power in War
