Iran saw MoU as attempt by Israel, US to buy time for larger attack, so it did the same - report

Iran perceived a memorandum of understanding with the United States as a strategic maneuver by Israel and the U.S. to buy time for a more significant attack, while simultaneously using the period to bolster its own readiness for a larger conflict, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing Iranian and Arab officials.

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There is also a widespread view in Iran that the main war has not yet begun. What we have seen so far is increasingly interpreted through the lens of ‘salami-slicing’ tactics - limited, incremental escalation designed to weaken capabilities before a larger confrontation.

Arab intelligence officials reportedly intercepted evidence indicating Iranian leaders were planning to expand the war by targeting enemy territory, thereby escalating costs for the U.S. Mohammad Hassan Sangtarash, a Tehran-based defense analyst, told the WSJ that many in Iran believe the "main war has not yet begun" and that current actions are "salami-slicing" tactics aimed at weakening adversaries before a major confrontation.

As part of its preparations, Iran dispatched advisors to Iraq, Yemen, and Lebanon to coordinate with its proxy militias. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reportedly sent commanders to assist Yemen's Houthi group, guiding missile deployments targeting the Red Sea and providing lists of objectives. The IRGC also issued threats to Gulf states, vowing to target their energy facilities if the U.S. attacked Iran's, and provided specific target lists.

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Iran's baseline is war. Iran will remain on a wartime footing, preparing for a subsequent attack.

Further plans by the IRGC include sabotaging internet cables, inciting political unrest in countries with significant Shia populations, and conducting ground operations in Kuwait. Alan Eyre, a former U.S. diplomat and nuclear negotiator with Iran, stated that "Iran's baseline is war" and that the country will maintain a "wartime footing." The recent appointment of Ahmad Vahidi as the new Revolutionary Guard Commander in Chief is seen by experts like Saeid Golkar as consistent with a leadership preparing for "sustained confrontation."

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is consistent with a leadership preparing the security establishment for a period of sustained confrontation rather than a return to normal peacetime politics.