Khamenei Orders Max Military Readiness As US Says ‘Ready To Go Deep & Big’ If Iran Nuke Talks Fail

The US defence secretary has reiterated that the White House hopes for a diplomatic solution to keep Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. However, Pete Hegseth warned that if that failed, the US military was ready “to go deep and to go big” during an interview with CBS. “Again, we don’t want to do that, but if we have to, we will prevent the nuclear bomb in Iran’s hands”, Hegseth was quoted as having said.His comments came after US and Iranian diplomats opened indirect talks in Oman on April 12 over the issue. The next round of dialogue is set to take place in Rome on April 19, as per Axios. Meanwhile, a day after talks between Iranian and American officials in Oman, supreme leader Ali Khamenei told the country’s military leaders to maintain maximum readiness. He addressed commanders in Tehran on April 13, describing the military as the nation’s shield, reported Iran International. Khamenei told military officers that foreign actors were actively working to undermine belief in the legitimacy of the Iranian armed forces’ mission, as per the report. n18oc_world n18oc_crux0:00 INTRODUCTION1:50 US PREPARING FOR WAR AGAINST IRAN?3:50 DESPITE TALKS WITH US, KHAMENEI CALLS FOR MILITARY READINESS?5:32 TRUMP TO ‘MAKE DECISION ON IRAN VERY QUICKLY’7:30 IRAN INSISTS TALKS WITH US WILL REMAIN “INDIRECT”