As tensions in the Middle East continue to escalate, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued his starkest warning yet: Iran, he says, is now in a "full-scale war" with the United States, Israel, and Europe. His remarks, published on December 27, 2025, in an interview on the website of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, come at a pivotal moment—just days before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s scheduled meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
“We are in a full-scale war with the U.S., Israel and Europe; they don’t want our country to remain stable,” Pezeshkian declared, as reported by Associated Press and The Times of Israel. He did not mince words about the scale and gravity of the conflict, comparing it unfavorably to the devastating 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war. “This war is worse than the one launched against us by Iraq. On closer inspection, it is far more complex and difficult,” he observed, highlighting the multidimensional nature of the current standoff.
According to Pezeshkian, Iran is under siege not just militarily, but economically, culturally, and politically. “Here, they are besieging us from every aspect, they are putting us in difficulty and constraint, creating problems — in terms of livelihood, culturally, politically, and security-wise — while raising society’s expectations,” he explained, as cited by Nexstar Media. The president insisted that the West’s intention is to “bring our country to its knees.”
These remarks come in the wake of a brief but intense 12-day air war in June 2025, which saw coordinated Israeli and U.S. strikes devastate much of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. According to Iranian authorities and corroborated by Fox News and AP, the strikes killed nearly 1,100 Iranians, including senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. President Trump, in a televised address on June 22, stated, “Our objective was the destruction of Iran's nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world's number one state sponsor of terror. Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.”
Iran’s response was swift and deadly. Retaliatory missile barrages targeted Israeli cities, killing 28 people, according to Fox News and The Times of Israel. The violence was halted only by a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that took effect on June 24. Yet, the damage was done: Iran’s nuclear ambitions were set back, and the region was left on edge.
The June conflict also had significant diplomatic repercussions. U.S. involvement in the strikes brought a halt to nuclear negotiations with Tehran that had begun in April 2025, as reported by Al Jazeera. In September, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom reimposed United Nations sanctions on Iran, citing the regime’s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons. Iran, for its part, has consistently denied seeking nuclear arms, claiming its program is strictly for peaceful purposes.
Despite the devastation wrought by the June strikes, Pezeshkian insists that Iran’s military is now stronger than ever. “Our dear military forces are doing their jobs with strength, and now, in terms of equipment and manpower, despite all the problems we have, they are stronger than when they [Israel and the US] attacked,” he asserted in the interview. “So, if they want to attack, they will naturally face a more decisive response.”
Israeli and U.S. intelligence sources, however, paint a different picture. According to NBC News, Iran is still in the process of repairing its air defense systems and rebuilding its ballistic missile program, both of which were severely damaged during the June airstrikes. These efforts are expected to be a key topic of discussion during Netanyahu’s upcoming meeting with Trump, where the Israeli leader is reportedly planning to push for additional military action against Iran’s missile infrastructure.
The stakes of this diplomatic encounter are high—not just for Iran and Israel, but for the broader region. The Gaza Strip remains a flashpoint, with a tenuous ceasefire in place and a new leadership contest within Hamas looming. According to Barron’s and AFP, Khalil al-Hayya, a Palestinian politician closely aligned with Tehran, is expected to assume the leadership of Hamas’s political bureau. His potential election is seen as a sign of deepening ties between Iran and Hamas, and as a harbinger of further instability in the already volatile enclave.
White House aides, meanwhile, have expressed frustration with Israel’s approach to the Gaza peace process. According to Axios, some believe Netanyahu is actively sabotaging the framework for a lasting truce. “It’s felt for some time like the Israelis have buyer’s remorse,” an anonymous White House official told the outlet. “Implementing the Gaza deal is hard enough, but the Israelis sometimes do things that make it even harder.” Netanyahu, for his part, remains skeptical of plans to demilitarize Gaza, according to unnamed Israeli officials cited by Axios.
Against this backdrop, the rhetoric from Tehran appears aimed at rallying domestic support and signaling resolve to adversaries abroad. Pezeshkian’s invocation of the Iran-Iraq war—a conflict that left more than 1 million dead on both sides—serves as a reminder of the country’s resilience in the face of overwhelming odds. Yet, his emphasis on the “complex and difficult” nature of the current conflict also reflects the unprecedented challenges Iran faces today: economic isolation, diplomatic pressure, and the constant threat of renewed military action.
As President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu prepare for their high-stakes meeting in Florida, the world watches closely. The decisions made in the coming days could determine not only the fate of Iran’s nuclear program but also the stability of the entire region. For now, one thing is clear: the shadow war between Iran and its adversaries is no longer shadowy at all—it is, by Pezeshkian’s own admission, a full-scale conflict with no easy end in sight.
