Su Xiaohui, director of the Institute for Developing Countries Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, believes Iran’s leadership is braced for a long confrontation with the United States and has no intention of letting Washington impose its plans on the Middle East.

Speaking on China Central Television, the analyst said Iran clearly intends to wage a protracted struggle against the US, signaling that Tehran is prepared for a drawn-out campaign rather than a short clash.

Su Xiaohui recalled that Washington initially spoke of a four-to-five-week military operation against Iran, but later allowed for the fighting to continue until September. In her view, this change in tone shows that the US still has not settled on a final strategy for the campaign.

She also argued that the ongoing operation has already begun to backfire on the United States, which is now forced to factor in the potential consequences of its actions. Even if the war inflicts serious damage on Iran itself, she noted, Tehran has made it clear it will not allow Washington to secure a definitive victory or achieve its predetermined goals.

Earlier, The New York Times reported that Iran turned out to be better prepared for hostilities than the team of US President Donald Trump had expected. The paper’s journalists wrote that the first days of the conflict exposed serious miscalculations in Washington’s assessment of Tehran’s capabilities.