Iran said it would deliver a “crushing response” if the US attacks the Islamic Republic again. The warning follows US airstrikes targeting Iranian surface-to-air missile systems on Qeshm Island near the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran is prepared to defend itself and deliver a “crushing response” to any attack. He continued, “At the same time, Iran will not miss any opportunity to use diplomacy to secure its legitimate interests and demands, deter the enemy’s aggression, and establish security in the region.”

Late Monday, the US bombed Iran’s Qeshm Island. A US official said that the targets were “Iranians using surface-to-air missiles against US assets.” The attack followed Iran claiming to have downed a US Reaper drone. Tehran says it has shot 55 American drones down since the outbreak of war in February. 

The US strike came amid a renewed diplomatic push to end the war. Iranian negotiators met with Qatari mediators for three days over the weekend. The talks resulted in an Iranian proposal that would have reopened the Strait of Hormuz in two days if the US returned to its commitments under the June Memorandum of Understanding negotiated in Islamabad. 

A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Tuesday that the two sides remain far from reaching a deal. On Monday, Trump told Axios that Iran wanted to make a deal but was slow-walking negotiations. 

“We are talking to them. It’s going fine. The problem with them is … they try and tap tap tap [us along].” Trump continued, “There’s less urgency [on the Iranian side] than you think there would be, but they want to make a deal more than they ever wanted.”