There is nothing more dangerous than a wounded lion.
On the night of June 24, US President Donald Trump announced that both Iran and Israel had approached him with a request for peace and that a ceasefire would soon take effect. Trump expressed hope that the truce would be eternal.”He even congratulated the parties. “The World, and the Middle East, are the real WINNERS!”
To say that all of this resembles a surreal sci-fi film would be an understatement.
It’s worth recalling that even before assuming office for the second time, Trump had declared his intention to negotiate a new good deal with Iran. Back in 2018, during his first term, he personally withdrew from the nuclear agreement signed by the UK, Germany, France, the USA, Russia, and China with Iran. In April 2025, Washington and Tehran began new negotiations. It’s important to note that the talks began with an ultimatum from the US leader: if Iran didn’t reach a “good deal” within 60 days, it would face serious consequences.
By June 13 (the 61st day of the ultimatum), negotiations were formally ongoing, with another round scheduled in Oman. However, early in the morning around 3:00 AM Moscow time, Israel launched a large-scale strike on Iran, having carried out several sabotage operations beforehand to provoke minimal retaliation. Several high-ranking military commanders and nuclear physicists were assassinated in Iran. Iran eventually responded with missile strikes.
The sides attacked each other fire for nine days. Israel urged the US to join the conflict and destroy the underground infrastructure supporting Iran’s nuclear program, as Tel Aviv lacked the necessary weaponry for such deep strikes.
On June 22, the US attacked Iran’s underground nuclear infrastructure: 14 bunker-busting bombs were dropped on the underground facility in Fordow, and 30 Tomahawk missiles were launched at nuclear sites in Natanz and Isfahan.
Coincidentally, a day earlier, the Pakistani government had nominated the US President for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for his mediation in the India conflict. The statement was posted on the government’s X (formerly Twitter) account.
Following the US strikes, Israel continued its attacks on Iran. Over 50 Israeli Air Force fighter jets targeted military and industrial facilities in Tehran, dropping more than 100 munitions on the Iranian capital.
In response to Washington’s assault, Tehran vowed retaliation and struck Israel with several notable attacks.
On June 23, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Moscow and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin emphasized that the strikes on Iran represented “unprovoked aggression,” with no justification, and that Russia was working to support the Iranian people.
Iran’s Defense Minister Amir Nasirzade held a phone call with his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov. “Our decision is to punish the aggressor by all possible means, and we do not accept an imposed peace,” the Iranian minister stated.
Later that evening on June 23, Tehran announced strikes on US bases in the region. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated Iran “had shown no aggression” and would not tolerate it either. “Iran has not shown aggression toward anyone. And under no circumstances will we allow aggression toward us. That is the logic of the Iranian nation,” he wrote on his X account.
In total, Tehran launched 14 missiles at US bases in Qatar (the largest US airbase in the Middle East, housing the CENTCOM headquarters) and in Iraq. The Pentagon later confirmed that there were no casualties among US citizens.
Trump soon spoke of an impending ceasefire and posted a congratulatory message on social media: “Congratulations world, it’s time for peace!”
Earlier, he posted on Truth Social, calling Iran’s response to the US aggression extremely weak:
“Iran has officially responded to our Obliteration of their Nuclear Facilities with a very weak response, which we expected, and have very effectively countered. There have been 14 missiles fired — 13 were knocked down, and 1 was “set free,” because it was headed in a nonthreatening direction. I am pleased to report that NO Americans were harmed, and hardly any damage was done. Most importantly, they’ve gotten it all out of their “system,” and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE. I want to thank Iran for giving us early notice, which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured. Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
In this peculiar way, the US agreed to de-escalation with Iran.
Following this twelve-day marathon and its eccentric conclusion, the lingering question is: “What was it?”
Reactions of the Parties
Washington’s final stance boiled down to Trump solving all the problems — the war must end, and there are no grounds for its continuation.
The US is confident the strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities completely destroyed them, said White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt. She said on ABC that the US government has a high degree of confidence that the sites struck contained enriched uranium.
Leavitt emphasized that the US President still desires peace in the Middle East, but achieving it requires the use of force.
Israel expressed heartfelt gratitude to Trump after the June 22 strike.
On June 24, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel had achieved all the objectives of its military operation against Iran, adding that the nuclear and missile threats had now been eliminated.
“Last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened the Cabinet with the Defense Minister, Chief of Staff, and Mossad Director to report that Israel had achieved all operational goals. Israel has removed the dual existential threat posed by nuclear and ballistic missiles,” read the press release posted on the official website.
Throughout the twelve-day operation, Iran insisted it was ready to return to talks if Israel ceased its attacks. On June 24, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that Iran would consider a ceasefire if Israel ended its military operation.
According to Iran’s Security Council on June 24, Tehran claimed victory in the conflict, having forced Israel to admit defeat and unilaterally cease aggression. The council added that Iran remained ready to respond appropriately to any renewed attacks.
Even if the trilateral conflict ended under some opaque agreement that allowed each side to save face — hence the swift and somewhat surprising ceasefire — it’s still unclear what each side truly achieved.
Aftermath
Trump ostensibly played the role of Israel’s protector and helper in this conflict. Israel’s goal was to eliminate Iran’s ability to develop nuclear weapons, which involved destroying all nuclear infrastructure.
But did the strikes accomplish this? No one can say for sure.
On June 23, The New York Times, citing two Israeli officials, reported that Iran had moved equipment and uranium from the Fordow nuclear site days before the US attacks. Iran also confirmed it had transferred its enriched uranium stocks to a secure location. On June 12, AP reported that Iran announced the construction and planned activation of a third uranium enrichment plant, previously unknown.
“We have built and prepared a third enrichment site, located in a secure location. After today’s message to the IAEA, we will begin installing and equipping it with centrifuges,” said Mohammad Eslami, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, as quoted by Iranian state agency ISNA.
Thus, 400 kg of highly enriched uranium were preserved, along with possibly some of the enrichment equipment. A new enrichment facility is operational. The technology remains intact. Has Israel truly achieved its goals?
Even if the conflict outwardly ends, its essence has grown more radical, and the struggle will certainly continue. The prospects of the announced truce between Iran and Israel remain questionable due to the conflict’s complexity and the uncertainty surrounding the agreement’s terms, reported Reuters.
On June 24, former Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman warned, “At the beginning of the war, I warned that there is nothing more dangerous than leaving a wounded lion. A ceasefire without a clear and definitive agreement will certainly lead us to another war in the future, under much worse conditions.”
His logic is compelling. Iran began developing nuclear energy under the Shah, then resumed after the Islamic Revolution. For at least 30 years, Israel has accused Tehran of working on a nuclear bomb — yet no intelligence agency, including the IAEA, has confirmed that Iran possessed such weapons at the time of the attack. What might this suggest? Perhaps Iran was never committed to building such a weapon. Perhaps its leadership believed that doing so would bring more problems than not having one, and instead developed a layered defense: Hezbollah in Lebanon and Syria, pro-Iranian forces in Iraq and Yemen.
Now, Iran’s entire defensive network is nearly destroyed. Given the threats, what options remain?
It’s essential to understand what Trump and his team truly aimed to achieve with their “negotiations” and strikes on Iran’s nuclear program.
But regardless of U.S. intentions, they’ve now given Iran a powerful incentive to pursue nuclear weapons.
This is a translation of the article first published on the Rossa Primavera News Agency website on June 26, 2025.
