Iran will respond adequately to any attempts by any country to harm it, the Deputy Commander for Political Affairs of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Yadollah Javani said in an interview with Tasnim News Agency.
"If some seek to endanger the Islamic Republic of Iran’s interests, Iran will also endanger their interests with its capabilities," the general warned.
He added that if the Americans seek to continue with their bullying attempts, the Iranian "armed forces will use their own capabilities and potential to safeguard the Iranian nation's interests."
“When a country threatens Iran and raises this issue that it can block Iran's oil exports if it wants to, Iran’s reciprocal threat would be a credible threat,” the general noted, adding that Iran’s geopolitical position made it indispensable in ensuring the security of regional waterways.
He reiterated that the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz are secure for the transfer of oil and energy.
Iran’s military chief of staff, Major General Mohammad Baqeri earlier said that the country’s armed forces would give a "crushing response to any threat at any level" against the Islamic Republic.
READ MORE: Iran Will Close Strait of Hormuz if Country's Oil Shipments Threatened — Army
Late last month, a senior US State Department official said that countries buying Iranian oil should bring their Iranian crude imports down to zero by the time Washington re-imposes sanctions on Tehran on November 4.
On July 3, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani lashed out at Washington’s threat choker off Iran's oil exports, saying the US would never be able to carry out such a threat.
