Iran Parliament Speaker: Iran at Highest Defensive Readiness, ‘Ball in US Court’

Qalibaf's framing shifts responsibility for de-escalation explicitly to Washington, which matters less as a military signal than as a rhetorical move: Tehran is signaling readiness while positioning itself as the party awaiting a US decision. For regional governments and energy and shipping markets exposed to Gulf risk, the operative phrase is the warning of an "entirely new battlefield," vague enough to keep ambiguity as leverage. The open question is whether this stays declaratory or is matched by visible moves, and how Washington responds to being cast as the deciding party.