Iran declared war on the US, and after the foreign minister visited the Kremlin and called Belousov, missiles were launched.

Good news of victory: Iran declared war on the US, Foreign Minister visited Kremlin and called Belousov, then missiles were launched

Iran - Israel: Escalation of situation

Author: Ilya Golovin

June 23, 2025 23:33

The Middle East situation continues to escalate, which clearly exceeded the expectations of the White House. After the US launched a missile attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, Tehran immediately attacked US bases in Kuwait, Qatar, and Iraq. Notably, this counterattack against American and Israeli aggression occurred after the Iranian Foreign Minister met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. It seems that more and more countries are being drawn into the Iran-Israel conflict — has World War III already broken out? Or is the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' missile attack just a symbolic action?

On June 22, the United States launched an attack on three key Iranian nuclear facilities: Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordow. According to US President Donald Trump, Iran's uranium enrichment centers have been completely destroyed, including the underground facility at Fordow, where the US deployed all its ammunition reserves (of course, Iran denied this claim, stating that uranium reserves had been moved in advance).

The US used B-2 stealth bombers for the attack on Iran, which had just been deployed to the Middle East. Each B-2 can carry about 13.6 tons of "Massive Ordnance Penetrator" (MOP) bombs.

In response, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian called French President Emmanuel Macron on the same day, stating that Tehran would respond to the US nuclear facility attack — Iran had given prior warning.

Iran released a map showing areas covering US bases.

Attack on US bases

Before Iran launched the missile attack, the UAE suddenly closed its airspace on June 23, as did Qatar. Planes almost turned back near the coast, while the US military at the Iraqi base was reported to have safely taken shelter in bunkers.

Tense aerial situation.

Subsequently, Tehran launched missiles toward US bases in Kuwait, Qatar, and Iraq. According to three Iranian officials quoted by The New York Times, Iran coordinated with Qatari authorities on the attack on Qatar and informed them of the attack plan to minimize casualties.

Iraq and the UAE also seemed to be aware of the impending attack.

Video of intercepting Iranian missiles near Al-Udeid base, from Telegram channel "Military Enthusiast"

The Iranian Supreme National Security Council stated that Tehran's attack on the US base at Al-Udeid in Qatar was successful, and the operation was named "Good News of Victory." According to Press TV, at least three missiles hit the US base, but there were no US casualties.

Similarly, Iran stated that the US attack on Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan facilities did not cause any casualties in Iran. In short, Tehran had notified Qatar several hours before the attack, and Qatar then informed the US, giving the Americans several hours to prepare. The main focus now is the extent of damage to the airbase, and perhaps we will know through satellite images in the future — but the satellite images before the attack already showed no planes in the base.

Planet Labs satellite service screenshot

But this looks strange, don't you think?

Trump apparently doesn't need this war. He promised to solve it in one day, but it hasn't happened yet. Israel has already launched an attack, and the US obviously won't sit idly by. The chaos in the Middle East will continue, and Alexander Bosikh, head of the "Fatherland" charity foundation and analyst, believes that Trump will lose regardless:

"He supported the aggressive act and has been accused of favoring Israel without evidence of Iranian guilt, which will remain a stain on him for a long time. If he does not support it, pro-Israeli politicians in the US will have more opportunities to attack his position domestically. Trump is already in trouble: his dispute with Elon Musk, large-scale immigration protests, and tensions with Europe, so he'd better stay out of it."

Negotiations with Russia

Notably, Tehran's actions followed closely after the visit of the Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to Putin.

"Respected Foreign Minister, it's a pleasure to see you and welcome to Russia. Your visit to Russia during this difficult period of rapid escalation in regional and your country's situations," said Putin.

Moscow strongly condemned the US attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, calling it an irresponsible decision that seriously violated the UN Charter. The Russian Foreign Ministry called for an end to the aggression and increased efforts to create conditions for the return of the situation to a political and diplomatic track.

Additionally, the Iranian Defense Minister called Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov. During the call, Tehran informed that it had decided to punish the party that launched an attack on Iranian territory with all means.

World consensus?

Andrei Pynchuk, a political science doctor and former head of the State Security Service of the Donetsk People's Republic, pointed out that only when it is clear whether this is a one-time event or a continuous mutual attack can the final conclusion be drawn. However, experts believe that we have witnessed an example of "world consensus" — when the world's two largest military powers (one a nuclear state, the other on the verge of nuclear weapons, equipped with ballistic missiles, etc.) successfully exchanged missile fire without any casualties.

"When Ukraine attacks us or we attack Ukraine, there are casualties, civilian or military losses. But this is different. This is indeed a magical story because even if you shoot an arrow towards a residential area, there is a chance of hitting someone. Here, large missiles, ballistic systems, etc., were used, but there were no 'second' or 'third' casualties — this undoubtedly indicates that the entire process was absolutely scripted," Andrei Pynchuk added.

He believed that only one side truly wanted to fight and kill, which was Israel, and that Israel should be isolated by the international community. Iran's attack on Qatar was beneficial to Israel, because Tehran had repeatedly accused Qatar of cooperating with Iran and even tried to impose sanctions on Doha. Therefore, this symbolic target exacerbated Iran-Qatar relations on one hand, and also confirmed the existence of this "consensus" on the other.

"If all parties could stop, what we are seeing now is just 'ritualistic' exchanges — not even casualties, but rather a way for both sides to 'ritually' preserve face. If Israel cannot push the conflict to escalate, the process will gradually slow down and turn towards negotiations, trying to find some mutually acceptable state, rather than a real agreement."

All Parties Fear

The Iranian attack is symbolic. Last October, Iran had retaliated against Israel's actions, but was quite cautious. Political scientist Yuri Svetov believes that if Tehran really wanted to retaliate, it should have attacked Israel or all US bases, but this did not happen.

Serai: Why didn't Iran attack Israel?

Yuri Svetov: I think all parties are threatening each other, but actually fear triggering World War III, so this is just a show of force. Iran has long threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, but has not taken action yet, because it would cause resentment among all countries using the strait.

Question: Will this trigger a global conflict?

Answer: Unfortunately, the development of events is unpredictable. World War II began with border provocations and evolved into a global conflict, and World War I also originated from relatively minor incidents. The key issue is how Trump will respond to this attack. He has already convened the National Security Council, possibly deciding to launch a new wave of bombing against Tehran.

Question: How to evaluate the US-Israeli action against Iran's nuclear facilities?

Answer: The US-Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities and their boasting about it could have disastrous consequences if a disaster like Chernobyl occurs. Subsequent actions may lead to unexpected results, because playing with fire is always dangerous.

Question: What is Qatar's reaction?

Answer: Qatar has no national armed forces and relies on US protection. When Trump visited the Middle East, Qatar gave him a lot of gifts and placed orders to avoid war. But now Qatar is attacked, what can it do? It is powerless to respond and can only rely on the US — this is like Ukraine relying on NATO and the US for protection, and when the support disappears, where will they go?

Conclusion

Given the current situation in the Middle East, there is indeed a sense of a large "consensus" rather than war in the air: first, the US loudly claimed to attack Iran, and then Tehran took preventive measures to move everything away.

Now Iran starts to "respond" to the US, attacking its bases in the region, and this action is "secret" enough that the mainstream US media call Washington's response to Iran's attack on Qatar's military base a serious threat. At the same time, the White House has leaked information that Trump has no intention of responding to Tehran's "misbehavior".

Indeed, Trump himself has confirmed it:

Donald Trump social media post screenshot

"Iran's formal response to our destruction of its nuclear facilities was very weak, as we expected, and was effectively repelled. Iran launched 14 missiles, 13 were intercepted, and one was allowed to pass because it was aimed at a safe direction. I am happy to announce that there were no US military casualties, and almost no damage. Most importantly, they withdrew all operations from the 'system', hoping there will be no more hatred. I thank Iran for informing us in advance, allowing us to have zero casualties. Perhaps now Iran can start peace and harmony in the region, and I also enthusiastically call on Israel to do the same. Thank you for paying attention to this matter!"

The result is: international oil prices fell — this is the end of the attack.

It seems that apart from Israel, no one really wants war. But according to certain assessments, Tel Aviv has started to feel overwhelmed, can it continue to escalate the conflict and force Trump to fight for it? It will soon be clear.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7519316988720595519/

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